Unmasking the heir of Slytherin
by enchantingelana
Summary: Tom Riddle had a dark secret that not even Dumbledore knew about. Hermione is accidentally sent to the past and discovers his horrifying truth. Can she help him heal or will he still become the monster Lord Voldemort. This will not be your usual HG/TR.
1. When all seem’s lost hope for a miracle

**Disclaimer: No I am not the great J.K Rowling but I've kidnapped Tom Riddle and he's mine to do with as I please. **

With tears streaming down her face Hermione ran through the battlefield dodging and deflecting curses. She tried not to scream as she came across dozens of lifeless bodies lying on the ground. Corpses of adults and children with blood stained clothes and severed limbs blocked her path. She jumped over them trying her best not to trample on them but most of all she tried to avoid looking at their faces. Hermione nearly tripped as her leg bumped into another body. A flash of red hair caught her sight and she stopped immediately. With a feeling of dread she looked down to find her worse fears confirmed. The image of Ron's blood stained face burned into her eyes and for a moment she just stared at him refusing to believe it. She let out a blood curdling scream and cradled his head in her lap.

"Ron" she yelled touching his cold face. "No Ron you can't die" she grabbed his shoulders and shook him violently but he still remained unmoving. Sobbing uncontrollably she touched the small silver locket around her neck. Ron had given it to her last year as a birthday present, he had brought it from a homeless person in knockturn alley for a sickle. At first she had gone mad at him for buying her jewellery that could have been cursed but later it was confirmed safe after several check up spells. The odd thing about the locket was no one could open it up. They had tried everything from spells to physical force but it wouldn't budge. Even though it was declared safe, she had told a disappointed Ron that she couldn't accept his gift. She saw it as a type of thing you gave to your girlfriend, not your friend and she had told him clearly that she saw him only as a friend. But lately she had started to think about giving him a chance to become more than friends. She had put on his locket deciding that today was the day she was going to tell him. But she hadn't had a chance to tell him anything yet and now it was too late."Look Ron" she held up the sliver locket. "I'm wearing it, see I'm wearing it" She bent down and held it closer to his eyes. "Wake up and see. I'm wearing it" she said tearfully. "Wake up" she buried her face into his stiff chest and cried loudly.

After a while she stood swaying and walked away without looking back. A black masked figure suddenly stepped out and Hermione instantly dodged the killing curse it sent her way. "Crucio" she shouted with a pain filled voice. Tears continued to stream down her face as she continued to torture the death eater. She didn't care what was ethical, right or wrong. Nothing mattered. She just wanted to cause pain and suffering to all of those that had taken away her parents, friends and now Ron. An overwhelming feeling of hate started to fill her as she stared at the withering body before her. She wasn't satisfied enough, she wanted to end its life. Just like the way it had ended the lives of a thousand others. "Avada Kedavra" she roared and a flash of blinding green light touched the body and it stopped moving. Hermione stared at the corpse breathing hard but she felt nothing. No remorse, no guilt but no joy or happiness either. She felt empty and the pain inside didn't become any less. Hermione screamed loudly and sank to the ground, she punched the ground continuously with her fists. She had thought that killing would lessen her heart pain but it didn't, it was still there. She had expected to feel some kind of peace but instead she felt nothing at all. It was like she hadn't killed anyone at all but just stupefyied them instead. She snapped her head up and tightened the grip on her wand as Bellatrix Lestrange's high pitched laughter filled the air. She jumped up pointing her wand high into the hair.

"Well if it isn't potters mudblood" Bellatrix yelled. For a second she stared at the body and a flicker of surprise passed across her face. "Using unforgivable's are we now" she sneered. "Wonder what Dumby would think of that, must be turning over in his grave"

"Crucio" Hermione shouted but Bellatrix blocked her easily.

"You mudblood scum, How dare you" she roared.

"Crucio"

"Expelliarmus" Bellatrix shouted doging her spell. Hermione wasn't fast enough and her wand flew out of her hands and landed on the ground faraway. "Let me show you how to use the cruciatus curse" she hissed. Hermione looked back and forth between her fallen wand and Bellatrix's advancing figure. "Wuv's smather mudblood" Hermione ran as fast as she could doging her shouts of Crucio. Bellatrix's spells whizzed past her ears and into the tree branches above her head. Suddenly a sight made Hermione come to a halt. "Given up so fast mudblo----" Bellatrix paused as the sight also unfolded in front of her eyes.

At the far end of the field two figures stood duelling each other fiercely. There was no mistaking who the two figures were. Harry potter and Lord Voldemort were battling each other one to one. Suddenly one of the figures fell and Hermione realised with horror that it was Harry potter. Bellatrix laughed out aloud and she stared at Harry's fallen body not believing what she was seeing. Harry was supposed to be the saviour of the wizarding world. The only person that would kill Voldemort and set them free. He was a Hero and Hero's never lost, so then why was he lying dead on the ground instead of Voldemort. "The boy who lived lives no more" Bellatrix said laughing wildly. "The dark lord has won". This couldn't be happening. Voldemort couldn't win. All of their hard work and sacrifice couldn't have been for nothing.

"Harry" Hermione screamed running towards him and tripped on a large stone hidden by long grass. As she fell, her chest and locket slammed into another large stone, knocking the air out of her. From the impact of the fall a large cut formed beneath the locket. Blood started to seep out and soaked its silver body and the locket instantly sprang open glowing orange. She looked down at it in surprise. It required a blood sacrifice to open and now she knew why they couldn't open it before.

"Avada Kedavra" she heard Bellatrix yell. Hermione looked up to find the killing curse flying towards her but before it could touch her an orange light enveloped her.

Darkness clouded her vision and she felt like she was being sucked down through some kind of a large windy tunnel. She gasped for breath as she felt herself spinning and spinning. Then the speed at which she was being spun speeded up incredibly fast making it impossible for her to breath. She felt the chain of her locket break away and suddenly the spinning stopped. She found herself being dropped abruptly. Her head crashed into the ground and she passed out.

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	2. Waking up in the past

Hours later Hermione became conscious. Her body was stiff from cold and a terrible pain pounded away at her skull. A growling noise sounded through the air and she snapped her eyes open. Four pairs of glowing yellow eyes belonging to hungry hyenas stared back at her and Hermione screamed in fright. She had no wand, no weapon and she couldn't think of a way out. There was only one thing she could try and do. She could run. Hermione attempted to run past them but they were much faster. One of them ran straight at her leg and sank its teeth into her flesh. Hermione let out an ear splitting scream and fell to the ground. The others were about to pounce on her when a flash of light filled the air.

"Reducto" a voice roared and the hyenas immediately drew away from her. One of the hyenas lay injured on the ground but the others tried to attack her rescuer. Hermione saw one of the hyenas jump up and clamp its mouth onto her rescuers arm and a male voice screamed out. "Reducto" his voice roared again blasting the hyenas away. He continued to cast spell after spell and soon all the hyenas were gone. "Lumos" he whispered and bent down next to Hermione. She stared at her rescuers face surprised and confused. It was Professor Horace Slughorn but how could that be? Wasn't he retired? But there was something else not right too. He was looking more younger and less larger. "Don't worry my child I'm going to call for help" he whispered clutching his bleeding arm. Professor Slughorn conjured a Patronus and it speed away. Hermione looked around her and became even more confused. The dead bodies, they were all gone. She looked up and felt relieved to see that Hogwarts was still there.

"Where are the bodies" she asked making Slughorn eyes widen.

"There were no bodies my child, they all ran of" he said uneasily.

"No the corpses"

"Corpses" he said uncertainly.

"The dead people, they were all lying here. Where are the dead people?" she whispered hysterically trying to make sense of things. Slughorn slightly drew away from her.

"Must be the injury" he said pointing to her wounded leg. "Stay calm, its just hallucinations of the brain" She was about to say she wasn't hallucinating when something jumped on Slughorn making him scream and drop his wand.

"Avada Kedavra" a cold male voice suddenly shouted. Green light illuminated the air and a pale face belonging to a thin boy with dark hair flashed before her eyes. The hyena lay limp on top of Slughorn. "Professor are you alright" the boy ran towards Slughorn and lifted away the dead hyena with a flick of his wand. Slughorn stared at the boy with an expression of admiration and fear. "Professor" Slughorn continued to stare at him. "Professor Slughorn are you alright" the boy said a little louder.

"Of course my boy, just a little shaken" Slughorn forced out. "Quite an impressive spell you used there, so much talent" The boys expression briefly showed worry before becoming expressionless again.

"Professor I would appreciate it if you wouldn't repeat this to anyone. Other people may not see my brilliance like the way you do" he said hurriedly.

"No one can punish you for saving someone's life. Don't worry my boy your secret is safe with me."

"Thank your sir"

"I should be thanking you my dear boy" the boy waved his wand over Slughorn's arm and a bandage appeared around it. "O ho such fine work" he said patting the bandage.

The boy suddenly turned and looked straight at her. His expression showed a mild flicker of surprise and he immediately tensed tightening the grip on his wand.

"My child I almost forgot" Slughorn said looking at her apologetically. "I was coming back from a party and I found them attacking her" Slughorn said looking at the boy. "But I have no idea how she managed to get inside the grounds of Hogwarts. The protective spells are supposed to be unbreakable" For a while the boy stared at her intently with a look of surprise and curiosity. Hermione felt really uneasy. Something was really wrong and she just didn't know what. He looked like a sixth or a seventh year student. If that was so then why hadn't she seen him at Hogwarts before? His uniform, it was Slytherin and there was a shiny silver badge attached to it. She squinted her eyes and looked at it more closely. There was no doubt it was a head boy badge. But wait, Draco Malfoy was the Slytherin head boy so why was the boy in front of her wearing the head boy badge. That wasn't the only thing wrong, there was something different about the uniform too. She tried to think what it was and suddenly it clicked in her mind. The uniform was old fashioned, it was styled like the way people wore it in the 1940's or the 1950's. She looked up and noticed his black slightly curled hair. It was neatly combed and parted, the hair was also 1940s style. She looked over at Slughorn and noticed his robes were also old fashioned. Her mind was waking up and it was slowly starting to put the pieces together. The bodies were gone and Slughorn was back looking much younger. He was dressed in old style clothes and so was the boy. The boy was Slytherin head boy instead of Draco Malfoy.

"Are you injured" the boy questioned moving closer to her.

"Tom I think she has far more serious injures that weren't caused by the hyenas alone" The name Tom rang through her mind like a bell. She refused to believe the conclusion her mind was coming up with but everything fit together so perfectly. Hermione knew that when Slughorn taught in the 1940s the Slytherin head boy had been none other than the young dark lord, known as Tom Marvolo Riddle. The 1940s style clothes, hair and now the name Tom. It couldn't all be a coincidence. The boy knelt before her and raised his lit wand. Hermione saw his illuminated face properly for the first time. She knew from Dumbledore and Harry's description that Tom Riddle was supposed to be really handsome. As she continued to stare at his face she couldn't deny it. The boy in front of her was dead sexy. That meant she really was back in time. There was no other way of explaining away the things she was seeing. She immediately felt disgusted with herself for finding him attractive. She was looking at Lord Voldemort, the root of all evil and suffering. She knew he was a hideous monster behind a mask of beauty. Hatred and anger filled her up as she thought about her loved ones that had been killed by Voldemort.

"Here let me wrap that up" he pointed his wand at her leg and fear welled up in her.

"Get away from me" she screamed crawling away.

"My child he won't hurt you" Slughorn's voice rang out. This was all too much for Hermione to take in. It was impossible but somehow she was back in time when Voldemort was still a seventh year Hogwarts student. Suddenly Hermione felt her energy run out and she couldn't move further. Everything blacked out and she fell to the ground unconscious again.

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	3. Accepting reality

Hermione woke to hearing loud voices arguing with each other. Her eyes were still shut and she could feel a soft mattress beneath her. It didn't feel like her usual bed and she wondered where she was. Over time the sleepy feeling vanished and her mind became sharp once more. Her latest memories came flooding back and Hermione refused to believe it. It had to be a dream, some sort of a nightmare. She couldn't have gone back in time to Voldemort's school days. All the books had said it was only possible to go back in time a few hours with a time turner. It was impossible to go back so further in time and according to the books no such objects were known to exist that could send you back so further. But what if such an object did exist and no one knew about it. What if Ron's locket was one of those secret objects? She did recall seeing it glow before she found herself back in the past. She immediately touched her neck hoping that she would still feel it beneath her fingers. It wasn't there, all she felt was her own skin. No it couldn't be, there had to be some other explanation. The chain could have broken of and her locket had dropped onto the battle field while she was fighting. Yes that was probably what really happened to her locket.

The smell of disinfectant and healing potions met her nostrils and there was only one place that smelt just like that, the hospital wing. She must have become seriously injured during the battle and they had placed her here in one of the hospital wing beds. While she had been unconscious she must have had a bad dream about being back in time and the locket was just lost. That sounded like a reasonable sane explanation to her and she felt relieved. But her relief was short lived as a very familiar voice sounded close to her ears. It couldn't be. For Merlin's sake the man was dead, unless the whole back in time thing was true.

Hermione snapped her eyes open and stared at the source of the voice. Not so far away from her bed stood Albus Dumbledore looking much younger. His beard and hair was much shorter and coloured instead of the usual grey. The half moon spectacles were missing and his face looked less wrinkly. A short older looking man was glaring at Dumbledore and speaking to him with a raised voice. It was obvious the man was trying to appear intimidating but he looked comical instead. Young Slughorn and Tom Riddle stood behind Dumbledore watching the scene with expressions of slight amusement.

"I know your behind this Albus" the man suddenly shouted pointing his finger accusingly at Dumbledore. "You somehow tampered with the protection barriers and dumped this girl on the grounds."

"Now Armando let us not jump to wild conclusions" Dumbledore said calmly.

"Wild conclusions" he shrieked. "Only a Wizard of your power could achieve such a thing Albus"

"Even if it were possible why would I do such a thing?"

"Don't act so innocent" Armando Dippet said with spit flying out from the corner of his mouth. "You want me to look unfit for the job so you can replace me as headmaster" Slughorn rolled his eyes and Dumbledore looked at him briefly giving him a slight smile when Dippet wasn't looking. Tom Riddle suddenly looked concerned as he watched their exchange but his expressionless mask was immediately back in place in the blink of an eye.

"Armando I assure you I would never try to replace you using illegal methods"

"You would say that wouldn't you" Dippet said taking a step forward.

"Innocent until proven guilty" Dumbledore said smiling down at him. Dippet clenched and unclenched his fists several times before walking up to Slughorn.

"Well Horace, how convenient that out of all the other Hogwarts staff that could have found her, you had to be the one"

"I was coming back late from Celestina's party when I found the girl being attacked by hyenas."

"So you weren't involved in some plot to overthrow me"

"Of course not" Slughorn said crossing his arms.

"Your friendship with Albus isn't a secret you know"

"Being friends with your colleague isn't against the Hogwarts staff rule"

"Doing things behind the headmasters back is" he hissed.

"There is no plot to over throw you, the girls appearance is much of a mystery to us as it is to you" Dippet glared at Slughorn for a while before noticing Tom.

"What were you doing out so late boy" he said sharply.

"I was patrolling sir" he said coldly staring at Dippet unblinking.

"Of course, your head boy" he mumbled breaking away from Tom's gaze and momentarily closed his eyes. "So you met the patrnous Slughorn sent out with the help message and rescued them both"

"Yes sir"

"You didn't by any chance see Albus Dumbledore lurking in the shadows"

"No sir" Dippet looked unconvinced.

"Now Tom there is no need to be afraid of Albus" Dippet said with a more softer voice. Tom's face remained blank but his pale cheeks immediately reddened. "You can tell me what you really saw and I will personally make sure no harm comes to you" he gently placed a hand on Tom's shoulder and the boy immediately tensed.

"That was the truth" Tom said sounding very uncomfortable. He eyed Dippet's hand on his shoulder with great distaste and moved away slowly without being to obvious. "Headmaster if I found professor Dumbledore doing anything illegal you would be the first to know" he let so much hatred show in his voice that even Dippet looked slightly taken aback. Tom and Dumbledore made brief eye contact and Slughorn looked concerned. "It's late sir and I have an early morning class. May I be excused?" he said using his normal voice. Dippet's expression instantly became relaxed and he appeared tired.

"Of course Tom" he said rubbing his temples. "You are excused"

Hermione dug her nails into the mattress as she watched the scene in front of her. Her eyes caught a mini stand up calendar on the bedside table. She turned to take a closer look and the year 1944 clearly stood out in bold. There was no denying it now, she really was back in time. The office door close to her bed suddenly opened and a plump woman stepped out. She took one look at Hermione and looked overjoyed.

"Headmaster she's awake" the woman shouted making all eyes turn to her. Dippet, Dumbledore and Slughorn quickly made there way towards her. Tom was about to leave but changed his mind at the last minute and trailed behind the three adults. Dippet suddenly stopped and turned around raising up both his arms to halt the group.

"I will question the girl first" he said holding Dumbledore's gaze.

"As you wish Armando" Dumbledore replied back.

"Madam Whittaker the girl's condition"

"She is stable headmaster, you may question her" Madam Whittaker said pulling her up slightly and placing more pillows on her back.

"Can you understand me" Dippet asked and Hermione automatically nodded. "How did you manage to enter Hogwarts" She didn't know what to say. The truth was she had never really left Hogwarts and the protection spells didn't stop her from appearing at the same place at a different time. A part of her wanted to tell the truth but she knew they couldn't know she was from the future. Besides its not like anyone would really believe her and she had no intention of being sent of to St Mungo's mentally insane department. She decided to make up something suitable to satisfy their questions. "Well answer me girl, how did you get here" Her mind couldn't think of any stories to make up and she said the first thing that came into her mind.

"I don't know" Her voice came out low and cracking. She realised her throat was really dry and she reached for the glass of water on the stand. Dippet glared at her as she gulped down the water noisily. She noticed Dumbledore and Tom looking at her strangely. The glass nearly dropped out of her hands as she realised something important. Merlin, how could she have forgotten? Dumbledore was a legilimens and from the way Tom was looking at her she figured even at this age, he was one too. Of course they knew straight away she was lying. The only persons being fooled her was Dippet and Slughorn.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Dippet burst out. She felt herself starting to panic as she realised she only knew basic Occulumency. No matter how weak she was at shielding her mind she thought it best to at least attempt and so she focused on clearing her mind.

"I just remember getting knocked out and then waking up here" she said trying to tell as much as truth as possible without giving away anything that would expose her. At least that way they would know she wasn't lying and maybe it would make them less suspicious.

"That's supposed to be impossible the protection barriers don't just let random people appear" Dippet buried his face in his hands. "What will the parents think about the safety when this gets out" he mumbled into his hands. "What am I going to do, what am I going to do" He looked up from his hands. "How old are you"

"Sixteen but I turn seventeen on September the 19th" she replied easily and unconsciously touched her neck but the familiar oval shape did not meet her fingers. She noticed out of the corner of her eyes that Dumbledore was staring at her actions intently while Tom looked bored. That gave her one piece of vital information. Dumbledore was more skilled at legilemency while Tom Riddle wasn't yet developed and she had just enough power to block him out of her mind. She quickly scratched her neck and avoided looking at Dumbledore directly.

"Your parents" Dippet started.

"My parents" Hermione whispered sadly. "Their dead" she said tearfully and she started to cry softly. She wasn't acting, the emotions and the tears. It was all real. All the memories of her parents and her childhood came flooding back to her. She hadn't really had a chance to grieve them properly as fighting Voldemort and his death eaters had taken over all her time.

"Don't cry my child" Slughorn said patting her head gently and handed her a tissue.

"How" Dippet asked.

"A dark wizard killed them" she said looking at Tom in the eye. "He killed everyone, all my family and friends. I have no one" He stared back at her unblinking and she looked away as tears began to form in her eyes. She started to cry loudly into her hands as another fresh wave of emotions overtook her. She thought about the way her parents, Harry and Ron had been murdered. She would never be able to see them again and she would probably never be able to return back to her time. She truly was alone in this entire world with no one to call her own.

"That explains your injuries from extremely advanced dark magick" Madam Whittaker suddenly said. "It must have been a miracle for you to escape" Hermione didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the statement but yes it had been a miracle.

"Was it Grindelwald?" Dippet said and Dumbledore's expression turned grave.

"No" she said without thinking and immediately regretted it. Grindelwald was the dark wizard of their time and would have been perfect for her cover story. Now she would have to think of something else.

"Did the auror's catch him, does he have a name" Dippet continued.

"No the auror's didn't and he has no name. Our town people always referred to him as you know who" She suddenly looked up at Tom. His face was absolutely expressionless and he stared back at her unmoving. Of course she knew the dark wizards name and the wizard himself was right in front of her. She wanted to get up and strangle him for all the deaths and suffering he had caused. She broke away from his gaze and tried to calm herself down before she did something rash.

"Where are you from?"

"America" she knew that by saying she was from America she wouldn't have to display an ability to speak any foreign languages. "I know my accent isn't American, you see I was originally born in Britain. My parent's home schooled me before deciding to move to America." The story she had thought up in the last few minutes was perfect. "and then everything was destroyed by you know who" she started to cry again and buried her face in her hands.

"What's your name?"

"Hermione granger" she said in a muffled voice without thinking and she immediately felt stupid for saying her real name out aloud.

"Granger" Dippet repeated. "What was your first name, something mio I think" She felt relieved to find they hadn't heard her first name properly.

"Can you repeat your first name" she looked up and this time Dumbledore handed her a fresh tissue and she blew her nose on it. All she had to do was think of a first name that had the word mio or at least sounded similar to it. After wiping her eyes and blowing her nose several times a name finally came to her.

"Maya" she said uncertainly at first. "My name is Maya Granger" she said firmly keeping her mind blank as possible. No one seemed to suspect anything odd expect Dumbledore who was looking at her with a puzzled expression. She felt her insides squirm. How was she supposed to block a great wizard like Albus Dumbledore when she hardly knew any Occulumency? Well there was nothing she could do about it, he would know every time she lied. She knew that eye contact was essential for legilimency and she quickly looked down. Hermione knew that it would make him more suspicious but she thought it was better if he didn't find out what else she was lying about.

"Granger" Dippet repeated. "Are your Muggleborn" She felt angry at the question. Why did everyone have to judge you by your blood status? She couldn't say both her parents were muggles, her story would appear false. Muggles couldn't home school their children in magic or apparate them to different countries. "I'm Half blood she forced out"

"Judging by your surname I guess the muggle is your father"

"Correct sir"

"A pity, but one can't choose their parents" She felt like shouting at Dippet but it wasn't the best time to lecture him on Blood prejudices when she was an unwanted guest at his school. He looked at his finger nails in deep thought as if he was considering something and then he looked up at her.

"Well Maya I have no idea how you managed to get past the protection barriers. But you somehow managed to appear at Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry in Scotland." Hermione tried to act shocked and surprised but she was seconds late at reacting. Tom raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms while Dumbledore scratched his head. She wasn't the kind of person that acted to be something else in front of other people and she was finding it difficult. She knew that Tom had to have been a superb actor to have charmed and fooled so many people. He could probably see through her rubbish acting skills right now and the thought that he might discover her secret scared her. But he wouldn't be able to prove she was acting, he had no evidence and that made her relax a little.

"Armando I may have a theory to explain Miss Grangers mysterious appearance"

"Do enlighten us Albus"

"Miss Granger can you apparate" Being intelligent Hermione guessed Dumbledore's theory. She knew how to apparate but for the sake of his theory she had to pretend otherwise.

"No" she said avoiding his eyes.

"When you were facing danger did you have a strong desire to be somewhere else?"

"Yes"

"Did you have a particular destination in mind?"

"No really, just to be somewhere safe"

"Ah" Dumbledore said clapping his hands. "Wanting to be somewhere safe may have caused her to automatically aparate to a random location that appeared safe. The protection wards no doubt helped to make Hogwarts stand out as a safe place above all others"

"That's all very well Albus but it still doesn't explain how she got past the wards to apparate here in the first place" Dippet said waving his hands.

"That part still continues to puzzle me but I shall look into it" Dumbledore said.

"Maya I have been doing some thinking and I am willing to offer you a place at Hogwarts. All of your books, class material, uniform and a small monthly allowance will be provided to you from my private funding. But I ask only one thing in return, that you do not repeat to anyone about the way you arrived at Hogwarts." She had no money, no home and no education. She was stuck in the past and the best thing to do was move on and start living in the 1940's like it was the present time. Dippet was afraid of being kicked out and she had nothing to lose, in the end they all benefited.

"I agree" she said making Dippet smile at her cheerfully.

"I think you should be in seventh year, does that sound right Horace"

"Sounds right to me" Slughorn replied.

"Then we would have to sort you into one of our four houses. Your house will be like your family and you will live, eat and spend most of your time in their company.

A sorting hat is used for that. Also you will have to sit all the sixth year exams so we can determine the level of class you should be placed in for your seventh year"

"That's fine sir" she said nodding her head.

"We will introduce you to the whole school as a transfer student. It's a good thing you arrived at the first week of the year" he pointed at the plump woman. "Madam Whittaker here tells me you should be fully recovered in 2 or 3 days. Hopefully everything will be sorted in time for you to start by the beginning of next week. So you won't be too far behind" Dippet turned to face the others in the room. "Now I want all my staff to keep tonight's event strictly confidential and anyone found leaking anything will find their position at risk" That was Dippet's nice way of saying your fired if you tell anyone about her mysterious appearance. Dippet suddenly noticed Tom and looked alarmed for a second.

"Tom did you not intend to leave earlier" Dippet questioned.

"Forgive me sir, I was curious" he said carefully making his expression look apologetic.

"If you want to remain head boy for the rest of the year I suggest you don't say a word"

"Of course Sir, I would never go against your wishes"

"I believe a reward is in order since I hear from Slughorn that you were quite the hero"

"It was nothing Sir, I was merely doing my duty"

"You should have seen him Albus, such impressive spell work" Slughorn boasted.

"Now Horace don't you think your over doing it with the compliments" Dumbledore said.

"Albus your just jealous that such a talented student isn't in your house" Slughorn said defensively. Hermione watched Tom's mouth move upwards to form a slight half smile but in the blink of an eye it vanished.

"No one doubts his talents" Dippet said. "Tom, I will arrange for you to receive it sometime this week."

"Thank you headmaster"

"Maya I would like to properly introduce you to a charming young man" Dippet gestured Tom to come more closer to Hermione's bed. "This is Tom Riddle, he is the head boy of Slytherin house" With an uncomfortable expression, Tom slowly held out a hand towards her and she stared at it in horror. The hand of lord Voldemort that had murdered thousands of innocents was floating right in front of her.

"Now my child it won't hurt to shake his hand, I assure you my Tom is a right gentleman" Slughorn's voice boomed through the room snapping her out of her thoughts. Hermione forced herself to shake his hand and quickly withdrew as if he was contaminated with disease. No one noticed anything odd expect Tom and Hermione knew because although he was smiling at her his eyes looked annoyed.

"A pleasure to meet you Maya" he said with a slight sarcastic tone that only Hermione picked up on.

"Now that you know each other I'll ask Tom to give you a tour of the castle later" Dippet said. Hermione stared at Tom with pure hatred. Here was the man that had killed her parents and her best friends. She should have been chopping his head off but instead she was being forced to act civil with him. His face was now expressionless but his eyes were staring at her with interest and concern.

"Well now that everything's worked out for the best, let us all get some well deserved rest" Dippet said holding the door open for everyone to leave.

"Get well soon" Slughorn said walking towards the door.

"Goodnight professor and I hope your arm gets better" she replied back.

"Don't you worry my child, I'm a fast healer" Slughorn patted the bandage slightly.

"I'm sorry to hear about your parents and I wish you all the best in the future" Dumbledore said looking at her with a puzzled expression.

"Thank you professor" she said hurriedly lowering her gaze. Soon everyone was standing near the door ready to leave expect Tom. He was still rooted at the same spot staring at her continuously.

"Tom" Dippet called out and he immediately walked away without saying a word. Everyone started to leave the room. "Good night Maya" Dippet said walking out last and snapped the door shut.

"You too headmaster" she called out. Hermione lay down exhausted and took in a couple of deep breaths. She was still trying to get her head around waking up in the past. She was convinced Ron's locket was the cause of it all and suddenly she found herself angry at him. But her anger immediately vanished as she realised she would have been dead without it. Bellatrix's spell would of definitely hit her if the locket hadn't protected her. Thinking about Ron brought fresh tears back to her eyes. Harry was dead, he had lost and Voldemort had won in the end. Hermione suddenly paused her train of thought and wiped away her tears. She was in the past and none of that had happened yet. Did that mean she had a chance to change things? As she recalled the warmth of her mothers hug and the way her father used to take her out shopping she knew she had to have her revenge no matter what.

But meddling with time was supposed to be dangerous. To hell with the consequences she thought clenching her fists. Too many people close to her had died and Ron's death had been the final straw. Her heart had turned to ice and she had killed a death eater then without a second thought. Hermione had killed once and she knew she could kill again. Harry's parents would still be alive and he wouldn't have the burden of destroying Voldemort on his shoulders. Ron, the Weasly family and her parents wouldn't die at the hands of death eaters. In fact there would be no death eaters if there was no Voldemort. She would be saving thousands of lives by taking one life. She would be doing it for the greater good. Ron's locket had given her a second chance to save the world from Voldemort. She couldn't let Ron's death be meaningless, she couldn't just throw away the opportunity fate had given her. All she had to do was murder Tom Riddle and she promised herself she would. No matter what, she would find a way to kill him.

"Your one lucky girl" Madam Whittaker suddenly said making her jump. "In all my years I have never seen Mr Riddle look at a girl before. I think he has taken quite a liking to you" She knew the real reason Tom had been staring at her. He was trying to use legilimency on her and her lie had obviously made him further interested. "What do you think of him?" she said uncorking a potion vial.

"He's nice" Hermione forced out.

"Just nice, come one girl it's just you and me" she said pouring a thick red liquid onto a large spoon. She felt like she was back in her dorm being questioned by parvati and lavender. Her eyes started to slightly water. In all her years she had never thought she would ever miss being questioned by the gossip girls of Hogwarts. She looked up to find Madam Whittaker waiting for her to respond.

"Well he's, he's---" Hermione didn't know what to say. His an evil, mass murdering dark lord she wanted to shout out but that would make her look crazy. "Err--he's"

"Gorgeous" Madam Whittaker finished and held up the spoon to her lips. She swallowed down the sour potion and scrunched up her eyes. "Bitter I know but it'll get you up and running in no time" She poured some water from a jug and held the glass up. Hermione sat up and washed down the bitter taste from her mouth.

"Now lie back down" the plump woman pulled the covers right up to her chin.

"Sleep tight and don't forget to dream about seducing a certain Mr Riddle" she said grinning at her suggestively. Hermione forced herself to shyly smile back. The woman blew out the candles and crept back into her office. Yes, Tom Riddle was certainly going to be occupying her thoughts tonight. But seduction wasn't the topic she had in mind. She closed her eyes and smiled as she began to plot his death.

**Thank you to all my reviewer's. please please review, the more reviews the quicker the update. **


	4. A positive sign

She had been lying in the hospital wing for three days and she was bored out of her mind. Madam Whittaker wouldn't even let her go to the library and take out a few books. According to her reading would stress the mind and relaxing the mind, as well as the body was essential to her recovery. Once in a while students came down with minor accidents but no one stayed long enough. They gave her curious glances and sometimes she got a few hello's if the same students came back. She had only managed to strike up a conversation with a shy girl that stayed over one night. She had told her she was fourth year in Hufflepuff and her name was Maria. The girl wasn't very talkative but Hermione was so glad to have someone to talk to that she didn't mind doing most of the talking. She stared at the far end of the room and tried to read the labels of the various containers placed on the shelves.

"Morning Maya" Madam Whittaker said suddenly appearing with a chart. "Lets see your progress today" Hermione eagerly sat up hoping the woman would say she was well enough to leave the prison of boredom. She pointed her wand across various parts of her body and mumbled things to herself as she noted things down. "Well everything's healed" she said finally looking up. "But we still have to check on your leg" She vanished Hermione's bandage and the skin revealed was good as new.

"It's healed" Hermione squeaked happily.

"Not so fast" she said tapping her leg slightly with her wand. "I still have to check on the bones" Madam Whittaker moved her wand over her leg and a light illuminated her skin. "Well the bones have mended properly"

"So can I leave or at least go to the library"

"Am I that bad at taking care of my patients that you want to leave so soon" she said putting on a fake hurt expression.

"No it's not like that"

"Get up and give us a walk, then I'll declare if your fit to fly of" Hermione crept out of the bed and took a few shaky steps. After a while she found she could easily walk without any discomfort. "You are now officially ready to leave the nest" She felt so glad she was fully recovered. A house elf suddenly appeared and bowed down deeply in front of Madam Whittaker. With a snap of its fingers it made a large trunk appear.

"Miss for you" the elf said and vanished. A letter was stuck to the trunk with the name Maya Granger written on top.

"Maya it's for you" Hermione ripped open the letter and read it. Dippet had sent her clothes, school books and other necessary items. She would receive her uniform once she was sorted. The letter stated that Dippet had ordered a house elf to buy all the things a girl would essentially need. She could see by peering into her trunk that the house elf had overdone it. An assortment of gorgeous knickers and bra's were neatly folded at one corner. Three stunning dresses for special occasions and another handful of everyday wear dresses was piled in the middle. Two long cotton nightdress's and a hair brush was placed on the other side. She noticed a small pink container underneath the nightdress. She pulled the lid away to find it packed with cosmetics and jewellery.

"Look at that" Madam Whittaker said peering over her shoulder.

"I don't need this" Hermione rarely used make-up or jewellery and she couldn't help but think about the amount of Dippet's money that had been wasted on useless things.

"Don't be silly dear, every girl needs that to survive" She put the box away and dug her hands deep into the trunk trying to reach the books. She pulled out a hard object to find another box. She opened it to find bottles of shampoo and perfume inside it. "Merlin Maya, those are the latest perfumes" She stared at the coloured bottles for a while and put them away with a sigh. She decided to look for the books later. What she really wanted to do now was get out of her hospital gown and attempt to untangle her messy hair. "I think its best if you leave the trunk under your bed" Madam Whittaker said walking back towards her office.

"Is it okay if I go down to have a bath"

"You can wander around the castle just be back before lunchtime" she said shutting her office door. Hermione grabbed some fresh underclothes, a plain black dress, hairbrush and a bottle of shampoo. Hiding the trunk under her bed she walked down to the Gryffindor girl's bathroom. She knew she wasn't sorted yet but she didn't think Gryfinndor's would mind if they knew. She was glad it was empty. At first she spent a long time untangling her hair. Then she relaxed in a warm tub of bubbles and used her new bottle of shampoo. The smell of the shampoo was soothing and she glanced at the bottle reading the word Chamomile written on it. She washed out her hair and drying herself she got dressed.

She was so glad to feel clean after a long time but she wished she had a wand. Her hair was wet and she could have dried it with a spell. Gathering her things she went back to the hospital wing. She tried to towel dry her hair but it still stayed wet. It was really annoying and she decided to ask Madam Whittaker to dry it for her. She paused outside the office door and was about to knock but she changed her mind at the last minute. Madam Whittaker was probably brewing important potions and she didn't want to disturb her for something insignificant.

She decided to go down to the library. It was almost empty and she was thankful. She wasn't in the mood to be stared at or answer walked to the back of the library and into the defence against the dark arts section. She scanned the shelves uninterestedly. She had read most of the books before. A title suddenly caught her eye and she stared at it surprised. She had heard of the book but it had gone missing from the library in her time. The book was right in front of her. It was old and written entirely in Latin but Hermione could fluently read and understand Latin. It was titled, dark curses and how to avoid them. The good thing about the book was it included a section on how to do the dark curses first and then a section explained how to avoid them. Since it wasn't in the restricted section she could freely read it without suspicion.

She pulled the heavy book of the shelf and wiped of the layer of dust. From the looks of it not many students could read and understand Latin. She didn't feel like sitting at the tables and other students probably wouldn't bother coming down so further back. Hermione sat down crossed legged onto the floor and pulled the heavy book onto her lap. Apart from the few drops of water occasionally falling from her hair everything was going great. The book was really interesting. She was so deeply engrossed that she became completely unaware of the time. She was soon halfway through the book and an incantation to burn someone's skin was too small to read. Hermione leaned down closer trying to make out the writing and suddenly a huge droplet of water splattered right onto half of the incantation. She swore loudly as the words became completely unreadable. All she could make out was Ignis.

"Stupid wet hair, Ignis what" she said out aloud. "Ignis ob---Ignis co" she tried making out the next part but she wasn't sure if it was correct.

"Ignis derma" a voice suddenly said making her head snap up. She froze as she found Tom Riddle staring at her from a distance. She suddenly noticed that he was tapping his wand gently against his knee. He looked down at his wand and back up at her a few times as if he was considering something. Right now Hermione was very conscious of the fact that she didn't have a wand. He suddenly pointed the wand at her and started to walk closer making Hermione's heart rate increase dramatically. She closed her eyes tightly and any minute now she was expecting to hear him shout Avada Kedavra. Instead she felt a warm breeze blow through whole her hair. She snapped her eyes open to see the back of him as he quietly walked away. Hermione touched her hair with a shaky hand and found her hair completely dry.

She had been so convinced he was going to kill her but all he had done was used a drying spell on her hair. Hermione forced herself to get up. Shoving the book back onto the shelf she walked back to the hospital wing. She gulped down huge amounts of water and paced back and forth. Merlin knew how long he had been there staring at her and now he knew she was reading up on dark curses. He couldn't find out about her plan to kill him, that would have disastrous consequences. She sat on the bed. No she was just being paranoid, there was no way he could know. If she was reading a book on dark curses all it did was indicate she was interested in dark magic. It's not like that would really jeopardise her mission in any way. But she would have to be more careful next time, her mysterious appearance and lies had obviously raised a lot of questions in his mind.

"There you are" Madam Whittaker said bursting into the room. "Your 15 minutes late, where have you been" she said putting her hands on her hips. Madam Whittaker's actions reminded her so much of Mrs Weasly and she couldn't help it as tears stared to leak from her eyes. "Don't cry Maya" Madam Whittaker said with a softer voice. "I didn't mean to tell you off"

She put an arm around Hermione's shoulder. "I was just worried with you being new around here" She leaned into the woman's hug. It was comforting to be held in a motherly hug after so long. The memory of her mother ran through her mind and more tears leaked from her eyes. "Let me tell you something that will cheer you up" she said patting her on the back. "Headmaster's arranged for the wand maker to come and see you today" Hermione looked up and a smile automatically formed on her lips.

"That certainly lifted the clouds" Madam Whittaker said drawing back.

"When" she said excitedly.

"Sometime after 12, that's why I wanted you to come back before lunchtime" A small boy suddenly burst through the door and Hermione recognised him from last time. "Not again Ben" Madam Whittaker said looking at his hand. The boy nodded looking apologetic. "Your foods getting cold, I'll see you later" Hermione walked to her bed leaving Madam Whittaker to take care of the boy. She chewed her food down without even registering the way it tasted. She really felt incomplete and helpless without her magical powers. It had only been a few days but to her it felt like a long time and she couldn't wait to have a wand.

Three hours later Armando Dippet entered the room followed by Olivander the wandmaker. His hair was more well kept and his skin was less wrinkly but other than that he was still the same creepy Olivander. Four large boxes were carried into the room by house elves. The boxes were opened up to reveal wrapped wands inside.

"This is Olivander the wandmaker" Dippet introduced.

"Maya Granger" she said.

"Ah this is the girl you were telling me about" He gestured for her to come closer to one of the boxes. "Give one of the wands a wave until we find a suitable match for you"

For 30 minutes she waved wand after wand causing mild explosions, violent sparks or feelings of electric shock in her fingers. She had gone through two boxes and as she started on the third box she was starting to lose hope. After waving two more wands she couldn't be bothered to go on.

"None of them are matching" she said frustrated. "I doubt any in the box will"

"Not to worry, you aren't the first difficult customer" he suddenly laughed. "One boy spent an entire day trying out wands in my shop, only when we got to the last 5 remaining wands did we find a match for him" Hermione looked at him hoping to God he was joking but she realised he wasn't when he said she might have to go down to his store if none of the remaining ones matched. "Well these wands match up to most common witches or wizards but there are always exceptions" he said putting a hand in his pocket. "I wonder" he suddenly said in a high pitched voice and pulled out a box wrapped in sliver. "Why don't you try this one Miss Granger" he held out the box towards her. She removed the packaging to find a beautiful wand resting on red velvet. The way Olivander was staring at her gave her the shivers. With her hand shaking she picked up the smooth wand and gave it a wave. She was expecting another failure but to her amazement a soft white glow emitted from it and then it went out. She stood still staring at the wand in her hand. She couldn't believe it, she had found a match at last. "Congratulations Miss Granger" Olivander burst out.

"Great work Olivander" Dippet said. "How did you know it would match?"

"I didn't but I was curious to test it on her"

"Anything special about the wand"

"Not really but the boy that took all day to find his wand has the same core as Miss Granger's wand"

"Interesting that she matched with his brother wand"

"Interesting indeed Dippet and I think you should expect great things from Maya"

"Great things" Dippet said appearing puzzled.

"Well the boy possessing the brother wand is one of your most talented students" he said touching her wand with his finger tips. "I think we can assume that since Miss Granger has the power to wield the same wand, she may be capable of reaching the same level as him" he gave her a scary intense look and stepped back.

"Which boy Olivander, I have at least three to four boys that are the best in their year"

"Ah Dippet I'm sure this boy will stand out more than the others" he said rubbing his hands and stared at Hermione's wand once again. "Miss Granger's wand has the same core as Tom Riddle's wand" he said excitedly waving his hands about. Hermione dropped the wand onto the floor and stared at it in disbelief. It couldn't be. She had matched with Voldemort's brother wand and that also meant it was the same wand Harry Potter had. Fate was playing some sort of a sick game with her. It had pulled her into the past and given her Harry potter's wand to finish the job. Having Harry's wand turn up made her feel strange and she tried to think of it as a positive sign to go ahead with her plans. Olivander and Dippet looked at her concerned.

"Madam Whittaker" Dippet called.

"I'm fine" Hermione said quickly picking up her wand. "It just dropped accidentally"

"Headmaster" Madam Whittaker said bursting into the room.

"I think Maya's feeling faint, check on her will you" Although Hermione protested she was fine Madam Whittaker still made her lie down.

"I think its too much stress, she was in the library reading all morning" the woman poured a glass of water and added some powder from a bottle. "I see you've matched her a wand" she said eyeing Hermione's wand lying on the bed side table.

"Took long but we got there in the end" Dippet said smiling proudly.

"I advise you to use the wand a few times today just so it can get used to your magic" Olivander said packing up his boxes. Dippet summoned the house elves to carry away the boxes and then he left with Olivander after he told her to get well soon.

"Drink this" Madam Whittaker said holding the glass towards her.

"I'm okay, there's no need"

"Nonsense, now drink up" She gulped down the lemony tasting liquid and lay back down.

"I don't want you to exhaust yourself, no getting out of bed until tomorrow" Madam Whittaker said and disappeared into her office once again. She raised her hand towards her wand but changed her mind at the last minute. Olivander had told her to practice with it but she couldn't bring herself to use it yet. Hermione stared at her new wand feeling unsure.

**Please please review. It dosen't have to be anything long, something like good chapter will do. **


	5. Feeling stupid

It took her a while but afterwards she started to accept the wand as her own. Using the new wand she found her magic was more stronger than before and spells took less concentration to cast. Her old wand had been like using someone else's wand and her new wand felt like it had been made for her. Over the next two days she had sat the sixth year exams. She wasn't surprised when the results came through a day later telling her she had achieved outstanding in all subjects. Dippet had been extremely pleased with the results while Dumbledore looked at her suspiciously. Slughorn had praised her and asked her to join his slug club. Some things never did change with time but she had accepted his offer in the end. She didn't really care about being a part of his club but she knew Tom was one of the members. It might be useful for her to keep a closer eye on him and maybe it could help with her plan.

She was privately sorted in Dippet's office. Hermione had been afraid of where the sorting hat would place her as over the year she had really changed as a person. She knew that there was no way she would be placed in Gryffindor again. All that courage and bravery had gone down the drain last year. When it was war you quickly learnt that it didn't matter what method you used as long as you won in the end. She had become more sly, cunning and cruel to defeat her enemies. Even right now she was secretly plotting to murder someone and this wasn't the kind of thing Gryiffindor's did. She knew there were only two houses she could possibly be placed into. It was either Ravenclaw or Slytherin. When the Hat had been placed on her head it had taken it a very long time before it suddenly announced Ravenclaw. She was glad to have been placed in Ravenclaw, she didn't think she could stand living with Slytherin's. Slughorn had been disappointed she wasn't in Slytherin but he had gotten over it fast. She was told she would be introduced to everyone at breakfast tomorrow. She would also have to stay at the hospital wing for one more day as the house elves prepared a place for her at the Ravenclaw dormitory. She guessed it was being magically extended to fit her in since it was taking so long. When she came back to the hospital wing she found a brand new Ravenclaw uniform neatly folded on her bed. Since she was bored she decided to try it on. It was a perfect fit but she found it strange to see an eagle instead of the usual lion etched on her uniform.

"Your really eager to start" Madam Whittaker said pushing a trolley into the room. "Wearing your uniform a day earlier" She started to shift bottles onto the shelf from the trolley.

"I was just trying it on and there isn't anything to do around here"

"Actually there's plenty of work to be done but your not qualified"

"Can I Help?"

"Well I don't know, the headmaster might not approve the regulations state th-----"

"He doesn't have to know and it is my last day"

"All the better reason for me not to get used to you" She pushed the trolley into her office. "I'm going to really miss you when you leave"

"I promise I'll visit as often as I can" she smiled at Hermione and gave her a brief hug.

"In that case I'll turn a blind eye to the rules" The doors swung open and a familiar boy ran through holding one of his hands. "Good lord Ben not again" Madam Whittaker said looking annoyed but then she looked at Hermione and her expression relaxed. "I'm going down to fetch some supplies and you can take care of your first patient" she said winking at Hermione and walked out of the room. For an awkward couple of seconds the boy and her just stared at each other until he broke the silence.

"Are you supposed to heal my hand" he asked.

"Yes I am" she said uncertainly drawing her wand. The boy held his hand up towards her and she took a closer look. The skin had turned purple and red pimples were all over it. She had seen Neville's hand turn like that before in Snape's potion class. They had been brewing an antidote for a poison and Snape had told them to avoid skin contact with the potion until the final stage had been reached. "Were you making the antidote to Velminus staminax" the boy nodded to say yes.

She had an idea on how to reverse the effects. At the Potion's final stage the plant blood grass that affected the skin became inactive. Active Blood grass normally reacted with the skins keratin and turned it purple while inflammation made the red pimples appear. Well if she just undid the reaction with the keratin everything should be fixed and for that she needed a solution of zertomin and a spell for absorption. She scanned the shelf behind the boy and found a bottle labelled zertomin. Uncorking the bottle she poured it into a dish and made the boy dip his hand inside it. Once his hand was soaked with zertomin she pointed her wand at it. "Sorptsurra" she said expecting the hand to instantly heal but to her horror cracks appeared on his skin and blood started to heavily pour through.

"What did you do to me" the boy screamed clutching his hand and Hermione panicked. She was about run out and find Madam Whittaker when Tom Riddle walked through the door. He took one look at the boys hand and waving his wand he summoned a bottle of the shelf. He threw of the lid and poured the contents over the boy's hand. He muttered a few spells making complex wand movements and in a couple of seconds the boy's hand was healed.

"Thank you" the boy whispered and Tom nodded in acknowledgement. The boy turned towards her and giving her a frightened look he ran out the room. She felt really bad, its not like she had done it on purpose but the boy obviously thought otherwise.

Tom was staring at her with his usual expressionless face and it was creeping her out. She couldn't understand how a person could achieve such an emotionless face. It was like he wasn't a person but a perfect doll made from wax. In fact now that Hermione took a closer he appeared like a wax doll so much that it was uncanny. His skin was so pale and his black hair was so well kept that not even a single strand was out of place. Judging from the worn out look of his uniform she guessed it was second hand since he was an orphan with no money. But not one crease or even a small wrinkle was visible on his uniform. His appearance was just too perfect to be human.

"Ravenclaw" he said breaking the silence. "Unbelievable" What did he mean by that? If he was finding it hard to believe that she was in Ravenclaw did he mean to say that she was dumb?

"What do you mean unbelievable" she said trying to sound like she wasn't really bothered but she couldn't help the traces of anger from creeping into her voice.

"Anyone with a brain would know not to add zertomin" he said sneering at her.

She couldn't understand where she had gone wrong. For the first time in her life she felt less intelligent. Now she knew how Neville felt like in Snape's class.

"But Zertomin undoes the reaction with the skins Keratin and that----"

"Is exactly what we want to avoid" he said cutting in. She waited for him to go on and explain why, but he stayed silent looking at her expectantly. She realised he wanted her to ask him for the explanation. She knew he was enjoying this by making her feel inferior to him. He wanted her to confirm it by begging him for the answer. It felt really degrading but she was Hermione Granger and she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep at night if she didn't know the answer.

"Why" she whispered looking down at the floor.

"The reaction with the Keratin stops the blood grass from proceeding any further. Although Zertomin reverses the reaction it does not inactivate the blood grass, leaving it free to move past the skin and into the blood vessels. The blood vessels then rupture causing heavy bleeding" Still looking at the floor, at that moment Hermione felt like dying of shame. How could she have not realised the blood grass would still be active. "What you want to do is inactivate the blood grass first then undo the Keratin reaction." His answer made perfect sense. Why hadn't she thought of that? "Calamus vivariae is what you are supposed to use. Never Zertomin" he said emphasising the last words. She snapped her head up and looked at him straight in the eye. There was absolutely no need for him to say that at the end. It's not like she had a degree in healing and she was bound to make mistakes. He was obviously enjoying making her feel stupid. He continued to stare back and she looked down at the floor once more feeling uncomfortable.

"Madam Whittaker's not here" she said hoping he would go away.

"I'm here to see you" he said making her look up immediately.

**Please review, they really make me happy and a happy writer means faster updates. I should really be revising for my uni exams but my muse just won't leave me alone. **


	6. Failed attempt

Why the hell would he come down to see her unless he knew something about her? She backed away dipping a hand into her pocket and touched her wand with her fingertips. His eyes took on a questioning look.

"Headmaster sent me to give you a tour of the castle" he said looking at the hand resting in her pocket. She felt so relieved after hearing him say that. So he didn't know anything about her. Dippet had sent him and she was getting all scared for no reason. She noticed his eyes on her hand and she slowly removed it from her pocket. "After you" he said holding the door open. Hermione couldn't see a way out of this. She was supposed to be new around here. It would be suspicious if she knew where everything was without being shown around first. She didn't like the idea of prowling around the entire castle all alone with Lord Voldemort but she didn't have a choice. Dippet wanted Tom to show her around and she would have to go through with it. She reluctantly walked through the door avoiding his eyes. Madam Whittaker suddenly appeared carrying a huge box.

"Maya" she said breathlessly. "Where do you think your going?" Before she could say anything Tom stepped out from behind her. "Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said excitedly and gave Hermione a knowing smile.

"Allow me Madam" Tom said taking the heavy box out of her hands.

"That's very kind of you Mr Riddle" She said stretching her arms. "Just place it outside the office door" While Tom disappeared inside with the box Madam Whittaker came up to her grinning. "Sneaking of with him were you" she whispered.

"It's not like that, headmaster told him to give me a tour of the castle" she whispered back defensively.

"That's great. It will give some time to be alone with him" She did not like what she was hearing. "Just imagine how romantic it will be Maya, You and him up on the astronomy tower with all the stars in the night sky" Hermione pictured throwing an unsuspecting Tom of the astronomy tower. She unconsciously smiled at the thought and Madam Whittaker took it in the wrong way. "There he comes now" she said hurriedly stepping back. Hermione couldn't help but look ill. Why couldn't anyone see through Tom Riddles shell? All he had to do was smile, talk politely, lift boxes and everyone thought he was great. Madam Whittaker noticed her expression and looked worried. "Maya are you okay"

"I'm fine, honest" she said quickly putting on a fake smile.

"Mr Riddle if I may ask you to take extra care of her. She's been feeling faint lately"

"Of course Madam"

"Don't keep her too late" she said walking past Hermione.

"I will bring her back as soon as I can" he said walking in front of Hermione.

"Shall we" he said turning to look at her. She nodded in response and trailed after him. He started to explain things and point as he walked along but she wasn't really paying attention. He was a fast walker and she was having a hard time keeping up with him. Soon she was slightly out of breath and extremely bored from his explanation of moving staircases. As he launched into a detailed explanation of the four houses she realised he was quoting Hogwarts a history, word for word. She had thought she was the only person that knew it word for word. Never in her life had she thought she would come across someone else.

But her brain couldn't cope anymore with hearing things she knew already. She zoned out and focused her vision on something new. It was completely unintentional but she found herself closely observing Tom Riddle. He was much taller than her she noted looking up at the back of his head. She looked down at his shoes. They looked worn out but they were very clean. He pointed to the left and she noticed his fingers were unusually long and thin. She could make out faint outlines of the blue veins on his hand as they easily showed through his pale skin. She looked away and noticed they would soon be arriving at the final floor. "Maya" she still continued to look in the opposite direction thinking he was still talking about the founders. "Maya" he said a little louder and Hermione realised with a start it was her new name.

"Yes" she said hurriedly looking at him. He was staring at her with a suspicious expression and she felt her heart rate increase. "Not feeling well, sorry I didn't realise you were calling me" She tried to look ill and hoped it looked genuine.

"Were you paying any attention" Although his face was back to being expressionless again she detected a slight tone of irritation in his voice. She summarised the Hogwarts a history's chapter written about the four founders to prove she had been listening. If he was impressed he didn't show it. "We are now at the final floor" he announced walking ahead. Her legs were aching badly. They were supposed to be walking but with the speed he moved at she felt like she had been running instead. "We are now heading up to the astronomy tower and the final destination of our tour" she followed him up to the tower. Her legs were really numb and she felt like she couldn't stand anymore. She sank to the ground trying to steady her breathing. He stopped in the middle of explaining something about divination as he turned to look at her.

"I'll get Madam Whittaker" he said turning to leave the tower.

"Wait, theirs no need. I'm just tired from walking" she said breathlessly.

"We'll wait here until you can breath then I'll drop you back" he turned and walked up to the front of the tower. With his hands behind his back he silently stared up at the starry sky. With the resting she found herself feeling better and she looked up at the sky. The stars were beautiful but that wasn't the only thing in the sky tonight. The moon was also out and its silvery light poured over the whole tower. She looked at him and his pale skin almost glowed in the moonlight.

She stood up deciding to announce she was well enough to walk back when she thought of something. She hadn't been serious when she had thought of throwing him of the tower. But now it looked like the perfect opportunity to kill him. He was of guard with his back turned towards her. His hands were behind his back where she could clearly see them. They were all alone and past curfew so the chances of someone coming up was slim. Trying to push him off wouldn't be practical. He was obviously much heavier and he might fight her of. But she could easily use the killing curse on him. A quick movement of her wand with the words Avada Kedavra and Lord Voldemort would be no more. She let all her feelings of hate for Voldemort fill her up. She thought about the way her family and friends had been murdered. Ron's lifeless face and Harry falling filled her vision as she slowly drew her wand. Quietly walking closer she pointed her wand high at his back and held her breath preparing to shout Avada Kedavra. He suddenly turned around and drew his wand at lightening speed.

"Expeliarmus" he shouted before she even had a chance to react and her wand flew out of her hands. In a matter of seconds she found his wand pressing into her neck and her eyes widened in fear.

"What are you doing?" she whispered trying to get away but he poked his wand even further into her neck. His expression was frightening as he glared at her.

"That's what I should be asking you" he said coldly boring his eyes into her.

He was waiting for an explanation and she didn't know what to say. He would probably kill her right now and easily explain away her murder, after all he had done it with moaning myrtle. Suddenly droplets of water started to fall from the sky as it started to slowly rain. She thanked whatever Gods were up there as a brilliant excuse came to her.

"I thought it was cold out here, I was going to use a warming spell on you" Hermione knew he would try to use legilimency and she kept her mind as blank as possible.

"Warming spell" he said staring into her eyes. "Who ever gave you the right to put a spell on me?" She had been expecting him ask that and she already had the answer.

"In the library I didn't ask you to dry my hair. I was only trying to return the favour" she said in a determined voice. "I'm sorry I even bothered" she tried to make her voice sound a little hurt. He immediately withdrew the wand from her neck and stepped back. He levitated her wand into the air and picked it up.

"Your wand" he said holding it towards her and she took it from him with a shaky hand. She felt much safer holding her wand and knowing the fact that he had believed her lie. "It's late we should go back" he started to head out and she followed behind with her heart still beating unevenly. She was lucky he had dried her hair that day without consent otherwise there would have been no other way to explain her behaviour. He must have decided it was fair enough for her to try and use a warming spell on him without his permission if he had done the same to her with a drying spell.

He held open the hospital wing door for her and she stepped through to find the room empty as usual. She was expecting him to leave but he walked inside and closed the door. Hermione walked towards her bed trying not to appear bothered by his presence when in reality she was praying for him to leave or at least have Madam Whittaker show up. She gulped down a glass of water and stared at her pillow. "Maya" he said after a minute of silence and she reluctantly turned around to face him. "I apologise for my behaviour at the tower" she could tell he was forcing the words out of himself. He clearly had no desire to apologise. He was about to walk away but then he paused. With a wave of his wand he made a bunch of red roses appear and she suppressed a gasp. Sure she had seen plenty of red roses before but not ones like these. They were sparkling and glowing with an aura of dark red. "Please accept these" he held the bunch towards her. They were beautiful but should she really accept flowers from Lord Voldemort.

"What are you waiting for Maya" a voice suddenly said making her jump. It was Madam Whittaker watching them through a gap in her office door. Even Tom appeared startled for a second but his expression relaxed as he noticed the plump women. She forced herself to take the flowers from him and he left without another word. As soon as the hospital wing doors snapped shut Madam Whittaker excitedly ran out of her office.

"What happened up at the tower?" Madam Whittaker said taking the flowers out of her hands.

"Nothing happened"

"Nothing eh, I heard him apologising for his behaviour so spill"

"Well he--- erm he----"

"I know what he tried to do" she suddenly said grinning and tapped her fingers against Hermione's neck. "The mark speaks for itself." Tom must have used so much pressure on her neck that it had left a mark and now this stupid woman was thinking it was a love bite. She forced herself to appear shy and looked down. "A word of advice Maya, never go all the way with a man until the wedding night" From the time she had come from the rules in the muggle world were relaxed but the wizarding world still maintained their strict rules. It wasn't acceptable to have a full sexual relationship without marriage and children outside wed lock were shunned in society. Hermione whole heartedly agreed with this rule. She had never liked the way people in the muggle world meaninglessly jumped out of each others beds. How could a man love you enough to have sex with you but not enough to marry you? If he couldn't commit to you it meant he didn't really care about you. At her summer holidays she would watch those muggle soaps with her mother and debate about it.

"I won't" she said looking up.

"That's a clever girl" Madam Whittaker said conjuring up a vase and placed the flowers inside it. "Such fine flowers I haven't seen anything like it before" she placed the vase onto Hermione's bedside table. "Now get to bed you have a big day tomorrow" Hermione appeared puzzled. "Your to be introduced at breakfast, did tonight's excitement make it go all out of your head" she said laughing and headed back into her office. Of course how could she have forgotten it was her first day tomorrow?

She changed into her night clothes and crept into her bed. She blew out the candles and a faint red light emitted from her flowers. She turned and stared at the roses. They looked sinister glowing all red against the darkness of the room. They were beautiful and scarily too perfect just like the person that had conjured them. She had failed to kill him tonight and she was grateful that she would have another chance. The flowers seemed to be laughing in her face reminding her of her failure and she turned away from them and shut her eyes trying to sleep.

**A huge thank you to all my reviewers. Tom conjuring her flowers really isn't out of character, if you remember in HBP he conjured flowers for Hepzibah Smith when he charmed her to steal Slytherin's locket. He feels the need to maintain his perfect head boy image and giving Hermione flowers is his way of making sure she dosen't tell Dippet anything. **

**Now I have to get back to revising for my haematology exam tomorrow and don't forget to review readers. **


	7. Early morning shock

She was running through a field of corpses trying to escape a bunch of death eaters when she tripped and fell. Bellatrix Lestrange's laughter rang through the air and Ron's lifeless face came into her view.

"Ron" Hermione screamed.

"Maya" a voice called. "Maya wake up" Hermione snapped her eyes open to find Madam Whittaker's face hovering above her. She threw of the damp quilt and sat up wiping the sweat of her forehead. It had seemed so real like she was back in her own time but it had just been a nightmare. "Bad dream" the woman said patting her on her back and she nodded. "Get ready, you have 30 minutes left" she got out of bed and headed towards the Ravenclaw bathroom. A few girls stared at her but they didn't say anything. She ignored them and carried on as normal. Back at the hospital wing she pulled out her uniform and got dressed. She ran the comb through her hair a few times trying to make it look as neat as possible and then she picked up her bag. She had packed the bag yesterday with fresh parchment, ink pots and quills. Before she left Madam Whittaker ran out and engulfed her in a hug. It terribly reminded her of Mrs Weasly and she almost felt tears forming in her eyes. "I'll hardly ever see you again" Madam Whittaker said releasing her.

"I'll come back later"

"You have a good day"

"You too" she said cheerfully and stepped out making her way towards the great hall. She could hear the sounds of students talking and she stood in front of the great Oak door feeling nervous.

"What do we have here" a loud voice suddenly said and Hermione turned to find Slughorn making his way towards her. "First day, no need to be scared Maya" Slughorn pushed the door and held it open for her. She stepped into the great hall to find it almost identical to the great hall of her time. The room full of people became quieter as they stared at her. They started to whisper and then talk loudly as Slughorn led her to the staff table. "Armando should be here soon, just wait here"

She didn't recognise anyone on the staff table expect Dumbledore and he was gazing at her intensely. She immediately looked away, he was obviously trying to enter her mind and the less eye contact the better. She could block undeveloped Tom with her basic skills but Dumbledore was too advanced for her to handle. Dippet arrived a minutes later and silenced the great hall with a wave of his hand. He reminded the students of a few key rules and made other announcements until he turned towards her. He gestured for Hermione to come and stand next to him and she moved nearer.

"I would like to introduce a new transfer student from America. Her name is Maya Granger, she is a seventh year and she has been sorted in Ravenclaw. I hope you will all make her feel welcome." Dippet then pointed towards the Ravenclaw table and whispered to her that she should go and sit there. Feeling nearly everybody's eyes on her she sat at the unoccupied edge of the table. "A round of applause for your new member of the house" The Ravenclaw table clapped a few times but they didn't really seem too happy. "Have a good day everyone and keep up the hard work" he said sitting down at the staff table.

Food started to appear and everyone started to eat. Hermione picked up a toast and stared at it feeling uncomfortable. Everyone on the table was looking at her strangely and whispering to each other. She looked away towards the other house tables. The Gryffindor's were chatting away and not to bothered about staring at her. Those that caught her eye gave her a friendly smile and she smiled back. The Hufflepuff's were the same but when they caught her eye they immediately looked away like they didn't trust her. She finally looked towards the Slytherin table. Most of them seemed uninterested but a few were looking at her curiously. A particular group of people in the middle of the table stood out. They were all kind of huddled together trying to listen to a person in the middle with long blond hair tied in a pony tail. Hermione had no doubt that it was Draco Malfoy's grandfather Abraxas Malfoy and from the looks of it he appeared to be the leader of the group.

She scanned the table for Tom and after a while she found him. He was sitting alone right at the end of the table with his face buried in a book. One of his hands held a glass of orange juice and he occasionally took a sip as he turned a page. She chewed on her toast as she continued to stare at him. Something about what she was seeing didn't seem right. Shouldn't Tom be sitting with his bunch of death eater friends and why was that blond aristocrat looking like the group leader instead of him. It could be that he liked being alone most of the time and he had ordered them not to talk to him. Maybe he didn't want their associations to known to the whole school, after all Dumbledore was supposed to be keeping a close eye on him. He put the book away and started to eat a bowl of cornflakes. Milk dribbled down the corner of his mouth and he reached for a napkin. Why couldn't he just wipe his mouth with the back of his hand like everyone else? Other people on the Slytherin table were using the back of their hands to wipe away crumbs and splatters. Abraxas Malfoy, the high society pureblood was even talking with his mouth full so why did he still feel the need to follow strict rules of table manners. Still staring at him she reached for her glass of orange juice only to knock it over by accident.

"Don't worry I got it" a girl said moping up the spill with a wave of her wand. "By the way I'm Susan Brewer" the girl said moving closer.

"Her—ahem, Maya Granger" she said hoping the girl hadn't noticed her slip up.

"So glad to finally have someone normal join the house, I never thought the day would arrive"

"What do you mean normal?"

"You know the kind that thinks theirs more to life than just studying"

"What makes you think I'm that kind?" How could the girl assume she was that type by just looking at her?

"Well for starters, you were staring at Tom Riddle for like the whole time you've been sitting here and that proves your normal" What was wrong with this girl? How on earth did that prove she was normal and it wasn't good that she had noticed her staring at Tom.

"What----I wasn't looking-- -"

"Look I'm not accusing you of anything. Come on Maya we're girls for Merlin's sake, its only natural to stare at a good looking guy"

"I guess" she said uncertainly, not sure what the girl was trying to prove.

"You know everyone in this house is all study and no life. They don't even bother looking at a boy, let alone talk about one." Hermione just smiled in response. Susan's definition of normal really didn't apply to her. She hadn't been staring at Tom because she thought he was drop dead gorgeous. She had only been observing her potential victim. "Its not like I don't have a brain, otherwise I wouldn't even be in this house. But just because your intelligent doesn't mean you can't have a life. The girls in this house won't even talk to me and I have to spend 90% of my time with them"

"Well I don't think they really like me" she said looking at the expressions of the other Ravenclaw students.

"There all like that. They don't like to talk unless it's relevant and believe me they will bore you to death. But you don't have to worry if you stick with me. What do you say, friends?"

"Friends" she said feeling glad that she had at least someone to talk to even if they were starting to sound like Parvati.

"The Gryffindor's are quite friendly and I know a few people that I'll introduce you to later. Now that we're friends lets get down to the fun stuff"

"Fun stuff" she repeated confused.

"You know gossip, boy talk and all that" This girl was seriously starting to sound more and more like Parvati with each second.

"Sure" She poured herself another glass of orange juice and waited for her new friend to go on.

"Okay let's start with Tom Riddle. I know his nice but there are a few things you should know about him" Susan whispered.

"Like what" she leaned in closer.

"His a Slytherin and while they all act civil they aren't very friendly. Things can turn ugly if you get on their bad side or if they decide to pick on you. See that boy with long blond hair, his Abraxas Malfoy. His group are the worst known bullies ever but they always manage to escape the professors. Tom's head boy so his always on his best behaviour but there are rumours about him being not so very nice and there was that whole thing about a girl being killed in our fifth year"

"Killed" Hermione said trying to appear shocked. Of course she knew all about the Basilisk and myrtle ending up dead.

"Someone else was charged but people are still scared of Tom. All I'm saying is if you want to get further involved with him you should be careful, not that you'd have much luck"

"Why would you say that?" she unconsciously touched her hair. Susan made a face and rolled her eyes.

"I'm not saying you ugly Maya, its just Tom never hangs around with girls or anyone at all. Everyone knows his the only guy that has never had a girlfriend before and it's not like no one wanted him. The most gorgeous girls have tried and he just ignores them or politely declines their offer."

"Oh" she sipped her Orange juice. Well Dumbledore did say Tom was incapable of love so it shouldn't be to surprising to know he had never had a girlfriend or a friend in his life.

"Some people say he might be you know, queer" Susan whispered.

"You think" she said trying to mimic the gossip girly tone of lavender. She already knew the answer. Voldemort loved no one but only himself.

"Not really, I haven't seen him pay any extra attention to guys lately."

"Oh"

"But I'm all for it if your gonna try something"

"I think I should just concentrate on studying" She didn't want to make Susan think she was really interested in Tom. It would complicate things when he ended up dead and she didn't need anyone pointing fingers at her.

"I've put you off haven't I? Shouldn't have told you all those things"

"No it's just, I'm not looking for a boyfriend right now" she took another sip of juice.

"How can you not want him?" Susan said staring at Tom dreamily. Hermione could think of several reasons like murderer and psychopathic future dark lord but of course Susan didn't know that. "Hey Maya have you noticed his fingers. Look at how long they are and you know what that means" Susan winked at her.

"What" she started to empty her glass of juice. Susan brought her mouth close to Hermione's ear.

"Just imagine those long fingers penetrating you deep inside" She whispered seductively. Hermione immediately threw up the juice back into her glass and started to cough loudly.

"You okay" Susan said patting her on her back. What was wrong with this girl? Why did she have to say things like that?

"I'm fine" she said wiping her mouth. Her eyes wandered to the Slytherin table and she found Tom staring at her intently. She accidentally let go of the glass and it shattered to pieces and everyone turned to look at her. She quickly took out her wand and repaired it.

"I made your hands go weak, didn't I" Susan smiled at her. "Sorry I know it's too early to say stuff like that" Hermione smiled back weakly hoping the girl would never say things like that again. Even Parvati and Lavender had a certain level they didn't cross but this girl seemed to break all boundaries. "Maya his looking at you" Hermione briefly looked up to find him still staring at her. "This is great, Tom never stares at a girl like that." She hoped to God he didn't know what they had been talking about. Susan had been whispering so there's no way he could have heard. She must have caught his attention after shattering the glass but did he still have to carry on looking at her like that. "You know I think you might have a chance" Susan said excitedly. "Do you realise how big this is. No girl in the history of Hogwarts has received so much attention from Tom before. I can't wait to tell all the girls"

"No it's really no big deal" Great now Susan was going to let the whole of Hogwarts know about it.

"It is a big deal, you just don't understand" Susan was almost jumping up and down in her seat from excitement. Wonder what Susan would do if she knew about the roses he had given her last night? She would probably die from excitement. Suddenly an owl landed in front of her carrying an envelop with Maya written on it. Hermione tore the envelop open to find her timetable inside.

"We're in most of the classes together" Susan said peering at it. "Merlin, your in advanced level for all your subjects and Tom's the only other person just like that. Everyone has at least has one subject below advanced. You must be really intelligent"

"Not really, I make mistakes" she said thinking back to the disastrous healing attempt back at the hospital wing.

"We have double potions with Slytherin's" Susan said standing up. "Lets get moving or we'll be late" They both headed down towards the potions class room. "Professor Slughorn's very nice and if you impress him he'll invite you to his slug club"

"I met him earlier and his already invited me"

"Really, Tom's apart of the club too and that will give you a lot of opportunities to get close to him" Hermione did want to get really close to him but not for the reasons Susan was thinking of.

"I don't really care about getting close to him"

"Yeah right"

"He just caught my eye, there's nothing more to it" She said tying to sound serious but Susan's smile told her she didn't believe a word Hermione was saying.

**Just in case some people didn't understand, back in the days the word queer meant gay (homosexual) and strangely gay meant happy or something like that. I wonder how a word that meant happy ended up to mean homosexual in this time? Now I have a medical immunolgy exam next week so I might not be able to update fast enough but maybe if I get enough reviews. I serioulsy need to revise or I'm going to kill all my patients. **


	8. They say I’m dumb and ugly

Hermione sat in the middle of the class room next to Susan. When all the students were seated Slughorn silenced the room with a wave of his hand. She noticed Tom was sitting alone at the front.

"Today we are going to be making a newly developed potion called Dismera starciss" Slughorn said "Can anyone tell me what this does?" In her time Dismera starciss was commonly used and she easily knew what it did. She raised her hand and the only other person with their hand raised was Tom. Everyone in the class and even Slughorn appeared a little surprised as they stared at her. "O ho what do we have here" he said loudly. "Looks like you may have competition my boy" Tom put down his hand and turned to look at her with an expressionless face. "Let's have her answer for a change. Go on Maya"

"Dismera starciss is used to instantly heal deep cuts that cannot be healed with a sealing charm but since the potion has harmful side effects it is only used in emergencies"

"Correct" Slughorn said clapping his hands. "10 points to Ravenclaw" Tom was still staring at her with an unreadable expression. If he was affected by her answering correctly he didn't show it. "Everyone pair up with your partners" Slughorn said tapping his wand against the black board and instructions appeared.

"See you later Maya, my partners that boy at front" Susan said gathering her things. Soon the whole class was in pairs expect for her.

"Ah Maya you don't have a potion's partner but I can fix that" Slughorn said jollily. She could see from a distance that Tom didn't have a partner and she instantly knew what was coming. She didn't know if she should be terrified or grateful for having a chance to get closer to young Voldemort. He led her to the front of the room next to Tom. "My boy you won't have to work alone any more. You and Maya will be working together for the rest of the year" Tom nodded in response. "She is in advanced level for all her subjects so don't worry about being held back" Slughorn tapped his wand at the register and the name Maya Granger appeared next to Tom Riddle's name.

Although his expression remained calm she knew he was annoyed to be working with her as one of his hands was tightly clenched into a fist. "Of you go then" Slughorn said and everyone started to bring out their cauldrons and unpack materials. She read the instructions on the board and Tom seemed to be doing the same. He distanced himself from her as much as possible. Then he set up the cauldron and set it alight. Hermione walked closer to the cauldron and was about to toss in the first ingredient when he made them freeze before it could land. She stared at the hovering ingredients confused and then she realised what he had done.

"Maya why don't you sit down and let me take care of the potion" That was his nice way of telling her to get lost.

"We're meant to work together" she said firmly. She wasn't going to let him tell her what to do.

"You'll get the same mark as me so why don't you let me handle it" he said more coldly.

"We're making the potion together"

"Look Granger I don't need you to ruin it" he said glaring at her. She noticed he had used her surname instead. Well he had definitely decided to drop his Mr nice guy act.

"Not so nice now are you, Mr I'm so sorry here's bunch of flowers?" he smiled at her coldly.

"That's right Granger, it was all an act. I never thought I'd have to speak to you again let alone work with you"

"Tough luck Riddle" there was a spark of anger in his eyes at her words.

"Just so you know I was never sorry. It was actually quite entertaining watching you all scared" his lips twisted into half a smile. If he thought he was going to scare her into giving up he was so wrong.

"If you think that will make me change my mind then you can forget it"

"I meant every word and I don't need you ruining everything"

"I'm not going to ruin it and we're making it together?"

"Why do you have to be so difficult Granger?"

"Your the one who's being difficult Riddle" both of his hands were now clenched into fists.

"I'm asking you nicely Granger, let me make the potion" he said in a low voice.

"If you have a problem why don't you explain it to Slughorn" she crossed her arms and glared back at him. He looked like he wanted to hex her into oblivion.

"Fine be my guest" he suddenly said unfreezing the ingredients and they fell into the cauldron. "But I'm warning you Granger, I better not get anything below an outstanding"

"Are you threatening me?" he gave her a look that said he was.

"You talk too much" he said turning away. They started to make the potion in silence. Every time he needed an ingredient or something that was near to her he would stretch his arm as far as it would go but avoid getting close to her. After a while she was starting to get annoyed with him. Sure the dark lord wasn't capable of love and liked keeping himself to himself but did he really have to act like she was infected with something deadly. Using a pestle and mortar she started to grind the poppy seeds into fine powder. She looked up at the board to read the next instruction and with her eyes still glued to it she tipped the powder into the cauldron. Tom must have decided to do something similar as seconds later she felt his hand touching hers.

"Don't touch me" he hissed, immediately pulling his hand back.

"It was an accident I have no intention of touching you" as if she wanted to touch the dark lord. It was clearly his fault for not looking and now he was trying to blame it all on her. Strange though how his hand had felt warm and human, she had always thought his hands would feel cold and lifeless.

"You should watch where your hands are going" he said picking up the oak tree roots.

"You should follow your own advice" he glared at her but he didn't say anything. Instead he started to chop the oak tree roots with much more force than necessary causing the chopping board to crack in the middle. Hermione pretended not to appear bothered with his actions but she carefully watched him out of the corner of her eyes. She was wondering when the psychopathic dark lord in him would show up and there it was. Although she appeared cool and uncaring on the outside she was actually feeling terrified on the inside as she watched him butchering the thick roots with a mad glint in his eyes. From the looks of it the only reason he was controlling himself from attacking her was due to the presence of Slughorn and the other students. He would have probably torn her apart if they had been alone. He skilfully levitated all the oak root pieces into the cauldron and she couldn't help but be impressed by this. Levitating a single object took so much concentration and he was effortlessly levitating over a dozen pieces at once. She looked up at the board and the last instruction told her to add 3 drops of doxy blood. She lifted the small bottle and added 2 drops into the boiling green liquid.

"Stop" Tom said when she was about to add the third drop. She ignored him and added the last drop.

"Stupid girl what have you done" he ran up to the cauldron.

"It clearly said add 3 drops" She couldn't understand what he was getting so worked up about.

"You've ruined the potion"

"I haven't ruined it"

"Why didn't you stop or are you so dumb that you can't understand simple instructions"

"I followed the instructions perfectly Riddle"

"Look at the colour" he said hysterically pointing at the cauldron. "What colour is that Granger?"

"It's red" she said stepping closer. "Like it's supposed to be"

"It's the wrong shade, its light red when it's supposed to be dark red" All the text books said that it was supposed to be red but she had read somewhere that if a shade of dark red could be achieved the chances of side affects were greatly reduced. But it was supposed to be impossible to get that shade and there were theories but no one really knew how to do it.

"Look Riddle it's meant to be red and while dark red gives the best results, the chances of achieving that shade are like one in a million"

"There is no such thing as chance in potions. It is an art of blending in the right things at the right amount and balancing the elements. But you wouldn't know that would you Granger. All you do is mindlessly follow the given instructions, never really thinking about the way it's being constructed"

"That's what we're meant to do, follow the approved instructions"

"No that's what dumb people like you are meant to do while someone like me would be able to spot the flaws and correct them"

"I am not dumb" she said in a high pitched voice.

"You are, because everything you know is learnt from books and their really isn't a brain inside that thick skull of yours. If you possessed true intelligence you would be able to see outside the box but you obviously can't" That really hurt and she felt like crying. The worst thing was, what he said had some truth in it. When had she really thought of something that she had made up using her own brain?

"It's meant to be red but we can start over if it bothers you so much" she forced out holding back the tears.

"There isn't enough time" She glanced at the hourglass to find it almost empty. "If you had just listened and added two drops" he punched the chopping board making it snap in two. Then he quickly repaired it with a wave of his wand before anyone noticed. He looked at the potion for a while then he sat down far away from her and stared unblinking at the wall in silence. She stirred the potion not knowing how to fix the situation. The colour in the books said it was meant to be red and surely they couldn't really lose any marks, could they?

"Times up everyone" Slughorn said loudly making everyone freeze. Tom got up and stood next to the cauldron. Slughorn went around the room inspecting and telling the students where they had gone wrong. He graded the potions and noted the mark in a small book as he moved along. He was soon going to be coming up to their table and she could see Tom becoming more tense by the second. Slughorn walked over to their table with a huge smile on his face but his smile slightly fell as he looked down at their cauldron. His smile was back on full again but Tom had obviously noticed the slip. "Well my boy there is nothing wrong with the potion but I was almost expecting to see a shade of dark red." He said in a disappointed tone. Hermione peered at Tom out of the corner of her eye expecting to see some sort of reaction. He was standing absolutely still with a facial expression that betrayed no emotion. "But I mustn't expect too much from a school boy, greedy me" he laughed. "Well it is satisfactory, you get an outstanding" he said cheerfully putting down a huge O next to their names. "Good work Tom and you to Maya" he said moving onto the next table. Tom drew in a deep breath and clenched his hands into fists.

"This is all your fault" he whispered harshly giving her a death glare. She couldn't understand it, they had gotten the top grade. But the dark lord was pissed of because he hadn't gotten the right compliments from Slughorn.

"We got an outstanding Riddle, theirs no higher grade than that"

"I regret not having shoved the wand right into your neck" he whispered really lowly so that only she could hear him. He quickly gathered his things and left the room in silence. She gathered her things feeling angry. She shouldn't be feeling so small and scared by him. He was just a school boy right now and she had to stay strong and focused. She had to kill him and save the future from Voldemort. She walked out the door and headed to her next class.

"Hermione did you talk to him" Susan said running up to her. "What did he say?"

"His a prick and don't ever mention him again"

"Aw sweetie did he reject you" Hermione stopped walking abruptly. "Well the other girls did have this theory that he might have been staring at you because you stood out from everyone else. You know like the way an ugly duckling draws more attention than the rest" That's it she couldn't take it anymore. The whole morning she had to endure Tom and now this Susan girl was calling her ugly.

"Are you trying to say I'm ugly" she hissed drawing her wand. Susan stopped talking immediately and took a step back"

"Of course not Maya" she said stuttering. "I was just repeating what the girls told me, anyway I'll see you around" The girl ran of fast. Great Hermione thought putting her wand away. I've just lost the only friend I had around here. That's another thing the war had changed about her. She tended to threaten and attack people more carelessly than before. For the rest of the day she sat alone at the back in all of her classes. She answered every question correctly receiving the same surprised glances but there was still no reaction from Tom. Susan sat huddled with a bunch of girls and ignored her completely. She didn't blame the girl but she felt really lonely as she watched them talking and laughing.

**Thank you to all my reviewers. I agree with my anonymous reviewer,**** most of the fanfictions make Hermione better than Tom but I don't think that's realistic. She is intelligent but I think she mainly just memorises everything from books. In HBP she struggled in potions and got mad at Harry for not following the approved instructions. Snape truly understood the art of potion making and made adjustments using his own intelligence. I think Tom would be intelligent enough to do the same but Hermione wouldn't have a clue what to do and her actions during potions in HBP is proof. Don't worry, I'm not going to make Hermione really stupid or anything but I think Tom would be a little bit better than her. **

**I made a picture for chapter 6 and the links on my profile page. Now I have to get back to revising for exams and don't forget to review my lovely readers. **


	9. A good day gone bad

The rest of the week was very tiring. Most nights she was up in the Ravenclaw common room catching up on school work. The Ravenclaw's were civil with her but she could tell they didn't really like her. It was hard to make friends with anyone as everyone already had their own group of friends and no one really wanted to let her in. Susan was still avoiding her and she was trying to stay away from Tom as much as possible. Her question answering in class was finally having an effect on him as every time the professors called out her name one of his hands would be clenched into a tight fist. The professors had immediately taken a liking to her. Although Tom didn't show it, she knew he was feeling threatened by it as he worked extra hard to impress them. After all the pain he had caused her she was glad to be making his life a misery in some way. As soon as she had a decent plan figured out she would get rid of him.

She put down her quill and stared at her finished essay feeling happy. This had been her last assignment and she had completed all the extra background reading for all her subjects. It was early in the morning on a Sunday and she would have the whole day free to do anything she wanted. First she decided to catch up on sleep and popped into her bed and slept till lunchtime. After lunch she went to see Madam Whittaker since she was the only person that she could really talk to. Madam Whittaker had been delighted to see her and she had helped her re-stock the shelves with various potion bottles. They had talked about a lot of things until late into the afternoon. Then she decided to take a walk outside to get some fresh air and sat next to the lake. Hermione removed a chocolate bar from her pocket and started to unwrap it. Madam Whittaker insisted she had one after mentioning she was far too thin for her age. She normally didn't indulge in things like chocolate but today she decided to make an exception. She was about to take a bite when it flew out of her hands. She jumped to her feet and found two large male Slytherin students and one of them was levitating her chocolate bar with a grin.

"Hey give it back" she said drawing her wand.

"No" he said waving the bar in her face.

"Yeah what are you gonna do about it" the other boy said. She had just had a very bad week and when things were getting good these Slytherins had to turn up and ruin everything. They did look familiar and suddenly where she had seen them before came to her. These boys were in Abraxas Malfoy's group and according to Susan the group was famous for their bullying.

"Give it back right now" she shouted. These boys were nothing compared to the death eaters she had fought before. She could defeat them in a second but she wasn't in a fighting mood but her patience was running out. The boy took a chunk out of her bar and Hermione lost it.

"Cena inflammare" she shouted flicking her wand and the chocolate bar burst into flames. The boy dropped it screaming and the other boy tried to attack her but she disarmed him effortlessly. He stared up at her with fear etched on his face while the sound of the other boy's cries filled the air as he clutched his burnt hand.

"Well well what do we have here" a familiar voice drawled out. She turned around to find Abraxas Malfoy pointing his wand at her. His voice sounded so badly like Lucius it was uncanny.

"Get lost Malfoy" she said pointing her wand at him.

"I don't believe we have met but I see my reputation precedes me" he said giving her the famous Malfoy smirk.

"Malfoy, Crabbe's hurt" the chubby boy said standing behind Malfoy.

"Goyle take him to the hospital wing, I'll take care of this" he said icily. She couldn't believe it, those boys were the ancestors of Vincent Carbbe and Gregory Goyle. She should have guessed from their size and their need to steal food.

"Ah where are my manners. I believe an introduction is in order. Abraxas Malfoy, Slytherin house" he smiled and held out a hand towards her.

"Maya Granger, Ravenclaw house" she said but she didn't shake his hand. He immediately withdrew it and the smile from his face vanished. "Well now that we've introduced ourselves lets settle the scores" he said.

"Scores" she said furiously.

"You attacked my friend and I can't let you get away with it. That wouldn't be good for the group's reputation"

"He tried to steal my chocolate bar"

"Who cares, the point is my group can't appear weak Mudblood" he said sneering at her. "With a surname like Granger you couldn't be anything else and it would do you good to learn your place"

"I'll put you in your place" she hissed raising her wand. How dare he call her Mudblood? Some things never changed about Malfoy's.

"Petrificus totalus"

"Protego" she shouted deflecting his spell.

"Conjivicitus inflammare" a blue light shot towards her and she blocked it in time. That was a dangerous spell that could have blinded her. If he wanted to play with dark magic so could she. She shouted one dark curse after another and they speed towards him like rain. He was very skilled and hard to take down. She shot a couple of non-verbals towards him but he turned out just as good at using those.

"Such dark spells, not so innocent are you" he shouted dogging a spell.

"Evil gits like you deserve everything they get" she shouted out breathlessly throwing another non-verbal at him. He appeared distracted for a second and she saw her chance. "Ignis derma" she shouted remembering the spell from the library. Orange light shot at his hand. Malfoy screamed and dropped his wand. Smell of burning flesh filled the air and the skin from his hand started to peel of.

"Petrificus totalus" a voice suddenly said making her go rigid and drop to the floor.

"Malfoy are you okay" a black haired boy said stepping into view.

"Lestrange do I look okay, the mudblood----my hand" Malfoy cried out.

"What should I do to her?"

"Forget the mudblood and take me to the hospital wing" he shouted clutching his hand.

"But the mublood----"

"Throw her into the lake for all I care" Malfoy cried out. Lestrange levitated her into the air. Then she felt herself being immersed in water and her vision turned watery. She heard Malfoy shout but what he said was drowned out by the rushing water in her ears. A couple of seconds later she felt herself being pulled out and dropped onto the ground.

"Are you crazy Lestrange" Malfoy shouted. "I didn't mean actually drown her. We could have been sent to Azkaban for murder" Malfoy dropped to the floor in pain. "Take me to the hospital wing you thick idiot"

Lestrange levitated a wailing Malfoy into the air and carried him into the castle. Stiff, wet and cold Hermione lay on the grassy ground starring up at the darkening sky. She wondered how long it would take for the spell to wear of. Only if someone would find her and undo the spell but no one was coming along. After sometime she could move a little and as the spell began to gradually wear of she started to lift herself of the ground. Her joints were stiff and she felt like a tin robot that needed oiling. It seemed to take an hour for her to bend down and pocket her wand. She couldn't yet do the wand movements required to undo the spell. Very slowly she dragged her feet forward and walked towards the castle. After what seemed like an eternity she stepped through the castle doors.

Most of the wet strands of her hair covered her eyes and she walked into the corridor dripping water everywhere. It was very uncomfortable. Her clothes were sticking to her and she was freezing. If she could make it to the Ravenclaw common room she could surely find someone to undo it. Someone suddenly stepped into view from the shadows and Hermione's eyes widened in fear when she saw it was Tom Riddle. This wasn't good, she was all alone in the corridor with the dark lord and she could hardly move. His face was unreadable but she was sure he was feeling murderous.

"What happened to you?" he said eyeing her curiously. She attempted to move past him but her stiff joints seriously slowed her down. "Someone must really hate you" he said suddenly understanding what had happened to her.

"Stuff it Riddle" she said with clenched teeth finding that she couldn't move her jaw properly.

"Poor Granger half petrified and wet" he said mockingly. His lips curled to give her half a smile and he drew closer making her pulse quicken. His half smile suddenly turned into a nasty smirk and she momentarily stopped breathing. From the way he was smirking at her he was definitely planning to do her some damage and Hermione tried to move but she didn't get very far. He suddenly drew his wand and her heart jumped violently. "Petrificus totalus" he said refreshing the spell. She went completely rigid and dropped to the floor. "Surely you didn't think I would undo it did you Granger" he said sinking to her level and Hermione stared at him with hate filled eyes.

He was probably going to leave her frozen on the floor and that was better than all the other horrible things she had been imagining. Feeling relieved she stared at the ceiling and waited for him to leave. But her relief was short lived as she suddenly felt his wand poking into her cheek. All her previous fears returned and her heart beat speed up once more. "You can't even move, this would be the perfect opportunity to teach you a lesson" he said lightly tracing the wand across her cheek and her fear increased tenfold at his words. He levitated her into the air and coldly smiled at her. Hermione tried to scream but she couldn't move. "The corridors aren't such a good place for these things, let's go somewhere more private" he whispered making her turn pale. She was so scared she found she couldn't breath and the horrific memories of Voldemort torturing people resurfaced in her mind.

Looking back and forth to make sure no one was watching he levitated her down the corridor and threw open the door of an empty classroom. He floated her inside and sealed the door with a locking charm then he set her down. She had made this week a living hell for him and now the dark lord had her locked up in an empty classroom. What the hell was he going to do to her? She was sure if she wasn't frozen she would have been shivering in fear. He locked eyes with her briefly and her heart thudded away violently as she stared into his blank face. He turned around and walked towards the window leaving her puzzled by his action. For a while he just stared out the window and she desperately tried to move. As the spells hold loosened over time she found she could stiffly move again. She forced her hand to remove her wand and she held it up shakily, maybe she could knock him out while his back was still turned. As if sensing the pointed wand he suddenly turned to look at her but he didn't attempt to disarm her, instead he watched her with an amused expression. Her grip was so bad that it fell to the floor with a clatter.

He let out a cold high pitched laughter making her hair stand. "I was wondering how long it would take before it dropped" he easily summoned it with a lazy flick of his wand and pocketed it. Her wand, the only chance of her escape was gone and she moved back an inch but she knew it was hopeless. He walked closer with an expressionless face but she noticed the predatory gleam in his eyes. With a wave of his wand he levitated her back into the air and she struggled trying to break free. He placed her on a table and made her lie down flat on her back. "Petrificus totalus" he made her go completely rigid again. "No moving until I'm finished with you" What did he mean by that? What was he planning to do?

Her heat was beating so violently it felt like she was going to have a heart attack. She watched him out of the corner of her eyes as he pulled up a chair and sat next to her. For a while he just stared at her and she suddenly became very conscious of the fact that her clothes were wet and sticking to her body. But then she noticed his eyes were glued to her face and she found comfort in the fact that the dark lord didn't desire women like that. Using his wand he carefully brushed away the tendrils of wet hair sticking to her face. She felt a strange sensation go through her and she would have shivered if she could. "Listen to me very carefully Granger" he said into her ear. "I don't like people disobeying me and the next time I tell you to do something. You do it" he said in a low threatening tone and goose bumps appeared on her arms.

He placed the tip of his wand between her eyebrows and her breath quickened in fright. "This is going to hurt Granger, you can try screaming but I don't think you'll be able to" he let out a cold high pitched laughter and her heart started to beat faster against her ribs. Was he going to Crucio her? It had been living hell when Bellatrix had used it on her. It was the sort of pain that made you wish for death and she was praying he wouldn't use it but being the dark lord he obviously would. Tears formed in her eyes as she waited for him to shout Crucio but he didn't say anything. The tip of his wand suddenly glowed purple and both her eyes felt like they were on fire. Hermione would have screamed but she couldn't move a muscle. Her vision blurred and tears streamed down her eyes. The pain was bad but a lot better than Crucio. He pressed the wand in deeper making the pain more worse. It felt like someone was ripping her eye balls out. She wished he would stop but he carried on and after a long time of agonizing pain he suddenly stopped. "Next time you do something wrong the consequences will be more severe" he shouted standing up. Tears continued to leak down her cheeks as the pain became replaced by stinging. "You won't be able to see anything for a while" he said removing the petrifying spell and the sound of crying filled the room. She jumped up and blindly ran into a wall. This had probably been a warm up exercise, he was probably going to use the Cruciatus curse next and she had to get away from him while she could move.

"Don't move" he said tapping her on the shoulder with his wand.

"Leave me alone" she said tearfully, finally finding she could speak. She ran her hands over the walls trying to find the door.

"Don't move. I'll drop you back outside" She heard his voice sound really close to her.

"Get away from me" She shouted hitting her knee into a table.

"Don't move you'll hurt yourself" he snapped poking his wand into her shoulder.

"As if you care Riddle" She said stumbling backwards.

"Don't push your luck I can do much worse" he suddenly shouted making her freeze. She knew he wasn't lying after all he had murdered moaning myrtle in his fifth year. "That's better Granger, now stop crying so loudly or I'll silence you" she held her breath trying to reduce the sound but she couldn't stop herself from crying. It was like her body was on automatic. Every time her eyes stung she couldn't help but cry in response. She couldn't see anything but grey clouds and her eye balls felt like they had been smeared with chilli sauce. He tightly held onto the sleeve of her robe and she flinched. She heard him say the incantation to remove the sealing charm and her breathing steadied knowing the torture session was truly over. He opened the door and guided her outside. He tugged on her sleeve and led her down the corridor. She wondered why he hadn't used the Cruciatus curse on her but she was grateful he hadn't. Crying softly, she shivered as she followed him and after a while he paused. "Petrificus totalus" he said petrifying her again and she fell to the floor once more.

She suddenly felt a spark of anger, why did he have to petrify her again? Wasn't leaving her temporarily blind enough for him? She suddenly felt his hot breath on her neck and a strong wave of fear went through her. "Don't even think about repeating this to anyone" he said into her ear. "I expect no problems with potions in the morning" he said poking the wand into her cheek and he placed her wand inside her pocket. "Goodbye Granger and try not to die of hypothermia" He stood up and letting out a cold high pitch laughter he walked away. Wet and frozen on the stone floor she tried to move but it was no use. She stopped crying as the stinging disappeared and her vision became blurry. It was starting to get really cold and she wished someone would find her. After some time she could clearly see again but she still couldn't move. It was getting more colder by the second and she waited a long time but no one was coming along. She desperately tired to move but she couldn't move an inch. She stared at the ceiling and thought of Tom's words. What if she actually died of hypothermia because no one found her in time?

**I've got exams next week so I won't be updating as fast as your used to. Now readers, leave me a review and put a smile on my face. **


	10. Cold and frozen

The cold was making her go numb and she couldn't feel the stone floor anymore. Losing hope of getting free anytime soon she closed her eyes and a few minutes later she heard footsteps. Finding that she could slightly move her jaw she moaned loudly and the footsteps halted immediately.

"Whose there" a voice said loudly and she moaned again. "Peeves if that's you I'm not falling for it" she moaned again continuously and the footsteps became louder.

"What the hell?" the voice said and two feet's came into view. A lit wand shone into her face and a messy brown haired boy appeared. "Are you okay? What happened?" She moaned again and moved slightly. "Finite incantatium" the boy said realising she was petrified.

"Thank you so much" Hermione said sitting up. She stood up shivering and the boy cast a drying spell on her. She stared at the boy and he looked kind of familiar

"How did it happen?" he said conjuring a blanket. She wanted to scream out Tom's name but obviously no one would believe her. She was grateful to be in one piece after her encounter with the dark lord but she was still pretty shaken up by it. If this boy wasn't here she would have been crying and she held back her tears with great difficulty.

"Malfoy" She said sneezing and the boy wrapped the blanket around her. "Thank you again"

"No need to thank me. Malfoy and his Slytherin pals, real nasty lot"

"Tell me about it" she said sneezing again.

"Well just the other day I got into a fight with him. Hated each other since day one"

"Who wouldn't hate that stuck up pureblood?" he laughed and she stared at him trying to place where she had seen someone like him before.

"You Ravenclaw, I'll drop you back to the tower" They both walked towards the tower and he told her all about the ways he had defeated Malfoy and some of them were so funny she had to laugh out loud. Soon they arrived at the Ravenclaw tower.

"It was nice talking to you and thank you for everything"

"I'll see you some time later" he said and was about to walk away but he paused. "Hey wait, I don't even know your name"

"Maya Granger"

"Nice name, by the way I'm Xavian Potter" he said smiling. So that's why he looked so familiar. He was related to Harry potter and he might be Harry's grandfather. The door suddenly opened and Susan stared at her wide eyed.

"Maya what happened? Why are you wrapped in a blanket and you look so pale" she said stepping out. Looks like Susan was talking to her again after a week of ignoring her. "Xav" she suddenly said in a surprised tone as she finally noticed him. "What are you doing here?" she said in a high pitched voice and glanced from Maya to Xavian a couple of times. "Oh my God you guy's didn't---"

"Susie get your mind out of the gutter" he said playfully punching her.

"Hey I'm not---"

"After being friends with you for seven years I know how your mind works"

"Come on Xav you turn up late with a girl wrapped in blankets and she's looking all sick and worried. What else am I supposed to think apart from things went too far than they were supposed to"

"Eww Susie for Merlin's sake"

"Nothing like that happened" Hermione said sharply finally understanding what Susan was talking about. This girl was ten times worse than Parvati or Lavender. She could twist anything innocent and simple into the way she wanted it to appear.

"Sorry about that Maya, She's crazy like that" That was an understatement she thought holding the blanket tighter under Susan's continuous gaze. The girl was probably trying to find more evidence to support her crazy theory. Like she would ever sleep with a guy she had met for 5 minutes.

"Okay what really happened then" Susan said putting her hands on hips.

"Malfoy drenched her with water and petrified her. I undid it and in case your wondering about the blanket, she was freezing so I conjured one"

"That's what really happened" she said in a disappointed tone. "Malfoy that idiot. Maya you shouldn't have picked a fight with him, his bad news"

"I didn't, he picked a fight with me" Hermione said sneezing.

"Poor thing lets get you warmed up inside" she wrapped an arm around Hermione and led her inside. "Hey Xav" she said looking over her shoulder. "You sure you didn't leave anything out of----"

"Susie you really have to stop reading witch romance. Honestly stuff like that never happens in real life. Those books are crap"

"Don't knock it until you've tried it" she said winking and shut the door with a wave of her wand. She led Hermione to up to her bed and Hermione threw of the blanket.

"Thanks Susan. Goodnight" she said crawling under her quilt.

"Hey Maya is that what really happened? You know you can tell me"

"That's what really happened. I'm not feeling well I'm going to bed" She pulled the quilt over her head and curled into a fetal position. Now that she didn't have to act anymore she let herself cry. Tom had really sacred her and the memories were still haunting her but she wasn't going to let him have his way. If he thought he could frighten her into submission using a mild dark spell, he was seriously mistaken. She had been tortured with the Cruciatus curse numerous times by death eaters and even then she hadn't broken down and given away information. She would show him tomorrow, she wasn't going to obey him like some mindless inferi. She briefly wondered why he hadn't crucioed her but she couldn't come up with an answer.

She buried her face into her pillow and continued to cry. She thought of her parents and friends. She really missed them and she wished she could see them one more time. She was going to kill Voldemort and make him pay for everything. She wouldn't rest until she saw his corpse lying on the ground, just like she had seen her parent's lifeless bodies.

"Maya" Susan's voice suddenly said making her cry more quietly. "Did Malfoy---did Malfoy do something to you?" Like she should say anything to that bitch that had ignored her for a whole week. "I know we haven't been the best of friends but you can tell me. I promise I won't tell anyone" yeah right, if she told Susan anything it was a guarantee that the whole of Hogwarts would know by morning.

"It's nothing really" Hermione said wiping away her tears "I just miss my parents" It wasn't exactly a lie, she had been thinking about them.

"Oh, I'm sorry" Susan said peering down at her with a sad expression.

"It's okay" She sat up and gave the girl a forced smile.

"Goodnight Maya" Susan said getting into her bed.

"Goodnight Susan" She said lying back down and turned to face the wall. She was starting to feel really weak and dizzy. Her throat was feeling sore and her nose was clogging up. She was certain she was going to have a bad cold tomorrow. It was all Malfoy's fault that Tom had found her in such a vulnerable state. She considered adding Malfoy and his group on her hit list. If she was trying to make the world a better place she might as well clean up all the filth. After a while she threw the idea out of her head. It wasn't their fault they had given birth to death eaters and being an evil bully wasn't a good enough reason to kill someone. But Tom Riddle was the root of all evil and she would eliminate him or die trying.

**I know it's short but I'm busy with exam revision. I know people find Susan strange but that's her character and she's weird like that. Don't forget to review. **


	11. Promotion

Early in the morning she stumbled out of bed with a bad headache and blocked nose. Sneezing several times she made her way to the bathroom. She had hardly gotten any sleep last night and now she had the cold. She might have avoided the cold if Tom had used the drying spell but the evil bastard hadn't bothered. Swearing that she would make his death as painful as possible she gathered her things. She put on her thick woollen cloak and headed to the great hall for breakfast. She didn't feel like taking her hands out from under the warm cloak. She stared at the food shivering.

"Hey Maya" Susan said sitting next to her. "Are you ill" she said touching Hermione's forehead.

"Common cold" Hermione said sneezing.

"You should be in bed"

"I can't miss classes, I'll get behind"

"At least get a pepper up potion from Madam Whittaker"

"If I see her she won't let me leave"

"Are you going to eat something?"

"I can't be bothered to move"

"Here" Susan said holding a toast up and Hermione nibbled on it. Her throat was sore and she forced down the thick bread. Halfway through she pulled away.

"I don't want it anymore"

"At least finish it off" Susan tried to encourage her but she nodded refusing to eat.

"Can you get me some juice" Susan held up a glass of orange juice. While she drank from it she looked towards the Slytherin table to find Tom staring at her expressionlessly. Too bad she wasn't dead like he wanted her to be. She stared back at him hateful but his expression didn't change.

"You need to see Madam Whittaker" Susan said making her look away.

"I'm completely fine"

"Hey Maya his looking at you again" Susan said in a high pitched voice.

"I wish he would stop" She muttered angrily. Tom was probably trying to use Legilimency on her but she could easily block him with her Occulumency.

"Your weird I'd give anything for him to look at me" Susan said with dreamy eyes.

"His all yours" she said closing her eyes in irritation. Why couldn't any of these idiotic girls see past his physical beauty?

"I'll be back" Susan said running towards the Gryffindor table. Probably of to gossip to her friends about her and Xavian. Some things never changed with time she thought rubbing her temples. She looked up to find Tom reading a newspaper and eating at the same time. Thank Merlin he wasn't looking at her. She went to the library to skim through a couple of books of interest then she made her way to the potions dungeon.

She was starting to feel uneasy about facing him after last night but she told her self she wouldn't let him scare her into obeying him. When she had first arrived she had been scared of him and a part of her still was. But she didn't want to live fearing Tom. He wasn't the dark lord yet and she would use that to her full advantage. Blowing her nose she stepped into the class room and sat at the front. Slughorn came in a few minutes later and started to explain how to make a complex healing potion.

"Who knows what the best time is to harvest blood grass" Slughorn asked. Immediately two hands shot up into the air and no one was surprised to see it was her and Tom. She slightly turned towards Tom to find him glaring at her and she glared back. "O ho two students, which one shall I ask" he said smiling. Hermione sneezed. "Maya are okay"

"Fine sir" she said sitting up straighter.

"Maya why don't you answer the question"

"If blood grass is harvested on the month of February it is the most effective in potions"

"Correct 10 points to Ravenclaw" Hermione beamed while Tom appeared unaffected. Tom raised a hand into the air. "Yes Tom"

"Sir the answer is incomplete" incomplete, what was he talking about. February was the best time to harvest it. Even Slughorn appeared puzzled. "It is most effective when it is harvested at the full moon on the month of February" Slughorn paused thinking for some time. "You are right my boy" he suddenly said. "Only someone like you could remember the small details, 20 points to Slytherin" he said loudly clapping his hands. Okay so she had forgotten the full moon thing, big deal. But Tom had obviously won the question time game in potions. She caught his eye and he slightly smirked at her knowingly.

"Let's make the potion, pair up with your partners" Blowing her nose she reluctantly made her way towards Tom's table.

"Sit down, I'll make the potion" he said lighting the cauldron. She stared at him unmoving. "Sit down Granger" he commanded.

"No" he stared at her in disbelief. "I'm not scared by the likes of you"

"You should be because last night was nothing" he said icily.

"What you did last night was very cowardly Riddle" she whispered. "You attacked me when I couldn't even move and that's the same as hitting a disabled person" both his hands clenched into fists.

"What makes you think I care if someone is able or not" he said turning to read the instructions on the blackboard. "Being brave or being a coward doesn't matter as long as you win in the end" What made her think it would make a difference to him. Of course you couldn't care about things like that if you were planning to become a dark lord.

"I forgot you don't have a conscience" she hissed reading the board.

"You have no idea what people without a conscience are like" he snapped.

Few people near them stopped what they were doing and looked at them. His mood seemed to always change instantly. One minute he would be calm and the next he would be all angry. "What are you staring at, get back to work" he shouted and the staring students instantly went back to what they were doing. He moved away from her and started to chop the ingredients with maddening force making the chopping board split in the middle again. She tossed in a couple of bay leaves and added in half a cup of spring water. He didn't stop her from making the potion with him. But just like last week he was acting like she was contaminated as he did his best to avoid being close to her. She knew she shouldn't annoy him further but she decided to push her luck.

"You know I'm not infected with plague" he didn't answer and carried on chopping the ingredients. "What's your problem?"

"You" he said looking at her and tossed the chopped ingredients into the cauldron. She was about to add a piece of billings root.

"Stop" he said making her freeze. Her hand hovered above the cauldron and a part of her felt like dropping it in. She noticed his tense look and dropped the root back onto the table. She didn't know why she was letting him have his way after what he had done to her last night. But a part of her must have been curious to see the results his adjustments produced. He was still staring at the cauldron uncertainly. He had probably expected her to chuck in the billings root to get her revenge for last night. He visibly relaxed and added in frankincense resin, stirred it clockwise 3 times then anticlockwise another 3 times. He levitated the billings root into the cauldron and the mixture turned bright yellow.

Hermione realised he had changed the order by adding in the billings root after the frankincense resin. She glanced at her text book and according to the book the potion was meant to be orange at this stage not bright yellow. At the final stage it was meant to be blue but if a light blue colour with a silver aura could be obtained the potion would be the most effective. According to the book it was very rare and hard to achieve. She noticed him adding in a few drops of bergamot oil and stirring it twice, then he added another drop and did half a turn. She looked up at the board to find no such instruction existed.

The potion was now muddy brown and she glanced at her book again to find the colour brown wasn't even listed at any of the stages. Then he started to follow the final instruction as written on the board and she drew closer to the cauldron. He held the final ingredient over the cauldron but he didn't drop it in. Hermione waited anxiously and he just stood still. He was doing this on purpose making her wait and after a while she looked up at him. He looked her in the eye and dropped the ingredient. Hermione looked down and couldn't believe what she was seeing. She stared open mouthed as the potion slowly turned light blue and soon a silver aura emitted from it.

How the hell did he manage to do that? It was meant to be rare and unachievable but she betted he could reproduce the same results every time he brewed it. He had to have invented the steps all by himself and even she wasn't capable of such things. The only other person she knew that could do something similar was Severus Snape. Harry had found his old potions book annotated with his adjustments, according to Dumbledore Snape was a potions genius. Dark lord or not she had to admit he was a genius that truly understood the art of potion making. He sat down and stared at the wall silently while she continued to stare at the potion mesmerised. At the end of the class when Slughorn reached their table he stared at their potion and gasped.

"My boy that colour is very hard to achieve" he said peering closer into the cauldron. "This is absolutely genius." He said loudly clapping his hands. Slughorn conjured a large bottle and placed the potion inside it. "I'll send in a sample and you could win the ministries award for young potions master of the year. What do you say Tom?"

"I would appreciate it sir"

"The deadline has passed but I know a few people at the ministry and I can pull a few strings for you" he said winking. Of course he could do that. Even in her days Slughorn was well connected to lots of important people.

"Thank you sir" Slughorn put a huge O next to their names in his book.

"Ah Maya I almost forgot, Good work and I'll try and see if I can squeeze your name in to the competition as well" She noticed Tom's hands were clenched into fists while his face was expressionless. She knew he was pissed of to have her name included when he had done all the real hard work. She did agree with him on this one. If he won he deserved the award alone.

"You don't have to sir" she said hoping he wouldn't enter her name.

"Nonsense, you both worked together on the potion" Slughorn said walking over to the other table. Tom silently gathered his things and quickly left the room. He appeared calm but she couldn't tell if he was still angry with her or not as his face never betrayed any emotion. In all her other classes throughout the day they kept on competing with each other at question time but other than that they didn't interact. Susan made conversation with her before asking her to sit with her group. She couldn't remember all the girls names except there were 2 from Hufflepuff and the rest were Gryffindor. While the girls whispered among themselves she was busy listening to the professor and taking notes. The last class of the day was with professor Bins and he was boring as ever. She couldn't be bothered to concentrate and she joined in with the girl's conversations. Talking to them she almost felt like she was back in her time talking with Parvati and Lavender.

In the Ravenclaw dorm she was about to change and go to bed when an owl arrived summoning her to Dippet's office. Susan peered at it over her shoulder.

"The headmaster wouldn't summon you this late unless he had to tell you something important" Oh my god. What if Dippet had run a background check and found out she had been lying about everything. What could be so important that he wanted to see her at this hour? Would she be expelled or sent to Azkaban for fraud. None of that could happen. She had to stay at Hogwarts and eliminate Voldemort. Susan noticed her pale worried expression. "Are you in trouble, did you do something against the rules"

"No" Hermione said quickly.

"Well then don't worry" She forced a smile and headed towards the headmaster's office. She took a couple of deep breaths outside the office door then knocked.

"Enter" a voice called out. She pulled out her wand and raising it she cautiously entered. If they had ministry officials inside to arrest her she would have a better fighting chance with her wand drawn. No one was there except Dippet and Dumbledore. They both stared at her raised wand questioningly and she immediately lowered it feeling stupid. She noticed a raven occupying the space Dumbledore's phoenix usually occupied.

"I heard the raven tries to bite anyone who enters" she said quickly thinking up an explanation. Dippet laughed but Dumbledore continued to stare at her gravely.

"You were misinformed Miss Granger, my bird never attacks anyone" Dippet said staring at the raven fondly. "Isn't that right Kakon" the bird croaked in response. That went well, Dippet had fallen for it but Dumbledore obviously knew she had lied. "Sit down" She pulled the chair out with a shaky hand and sat down with a nervous expression. "You are not in trouble Miss Granger" Dippet said noticing her behaviour. She let herself relax. If she wasn't in trouble then Dippet didn't know anything.

"How have you found Hogwarts so far?" Dippet asked.

"Challenging but everything's going well" she said cheerfully.

"That's good to hear. Now all the professors tell me you are an excellent student and all your exam results are outstanding. Recently the Ravenclaw head girl transferred to another school and I would like you to replace her" She stared at Dippet in disbelief.

"Ravenclaw head girl" she repeated. She didn't want to be head girl and live in the heads quarters. That meant she would have to share a common room with the dark lord and have her bedroom close to his. "Can't someone else do it?"

"No one else fulfils all the requirements except you. Congratulations Maya and you should move into the heads quarters tonight" he handed her a badge and a Hogwarts heads handbook. Great just when I thought things were going well something crappy always has to happen. She reluctantly put on her badge and forced a smile.

"I apologise for calling you at this hour"

"It fine sir"

"Goodnight and good luck" Hermione opened the office door and walked out.

"Ah Albus where were we with the forms for the----" She shut the door blocking his voice and speed down the stairs. Why did this have to happen? She couldn't stand being near him in all her classes and now she would see him day and night. Well it isn't entirely a bad thing she thought arriving at the Ravenclaw tower. She would be more closer to him and that could make the whole assassination business a lot easier. Why hadn't she thought of it that way earlier? Sure having the dark lord in your face the whole time was going to be annoying but it would be worth it in the end. Feeling much better she went up to her room. Susan was wearing a pink night gown and reading in bed.

"Hey Maya what did Dippet wa--" Susan paused and stared at her head girl badge. "Oh my god" Susan shouted jumping out of bed. All the girls in her dorm turned to look at them. "I can't believe it, your the new head girl". Most of the other girls congratulated her and looked at her with a new found respect. "I'm so going to miss you, when are you moving?"

"Tonight" Hermione removed her trunk and started to pack and Susan tried to help. "You don't know how lucky you are, most girls would die for your position"

"What's so good about it" she could already guess the answer.

"You get to be close to Tom" she said jumping up and down. "This is too much I have to tell all the girls". Giving her a brief hug Susan rushed out of the room. She pulled her trunk down the corridor and after a while she arrived at the heads quarters. A huge painting of Persephone and Hades guarded the entrance.

"What in the world made them get together" she said thinking out aloud, momentarily forgetting that paintings in the wizarding world spoke.

"Why do people keep judging us" the woman in the painting angrily shouted making her jump.

"Now darling calm down" the scary looking man said. "The boy warned us not to speak loudly"

"His ways of courting me might have been frightening and sometimes out of line. But just so you know girl I married him with my own free will. Don't know why people made up rubbish about him forcing me with the enchanted Pomegranate seed curse." Persephone continued with a shrill high voice.

"Darling please, he threatened to destroy the portrait if we disturbed him again" Hades said putting an arm around Persephone.

"I'm sorry" she said hoping Persephone would calm down. "I didn't mean to say it like that"

"I know exactly what you meant" she screamed pulling away from Hades.

The portrait door suddenly slammed open to reveal Tom Riddle looking furious.

"I've warned you before not to----" Tom paused as he noticed her.

"You've made that horrible boy come out" Hades shouted. "Run before he destroys everything" Persephone and Hades fled the painting leaving her all alone to face him.

"What are you doing here?" he said coldly.

"I'm the new Ravenclaw head girl" she said bravely.

"Head girl" he said in disbelief. He stared at her badge then at her trunk and it sunk in to him. "This is just marvellous" he said sarcastically and glared at her. She broke away from his gaze and stared at the floor. He stepped aside allowing her to enter then he banged the door shut loudly. After observing him closely for a week she knew that he clenched his fists or took his anger out on objects when he couldn't directly attack someone. Well the dark lord certainly wasn't happy with her becoming head girl.

The common room was much lager with better looking armchairs and a staircase led to two platforms with two doors on each. One of the doors must lead to her bedroom. "I can never get rid of you can I Granger" he whispered harshly making her flinch. "Bones, Longbottom" he called out. They were soon joined by two other heads. "This is Cynthia Bones, Gryffindor head girl" the blond haired girl shook her hand. "William Longbottom, Hufflepuff head boy" the boy shook her hand. "And this" he said distastefully boring his eyes into her. "Is the new Ravenclaw head girl Maya Granger"

Tom hastily gathered some books from the table and headed up to his room loudly slamming the door shut. Since Bones and Longbottom had come out from the rooms on the right platform and Tom had gone into the first room on the left platform it was obvious that her room was right next to his. She said goodnight to Bones and Longbottom. Then she levitated her trunk and headed up to her room feeling seriously out of place.

**Ginger was called Billings root in the old times, not sure what the time period was. In case people are confused who Persephone and Hades are- they are a Greek God and Goddess.**

** Hades was the God of the underworld and ruled over the dead. Persephone was the daughter of Goddess Demeter, who was responsible for growing things. **

**To cut a long story short - Hades wanted to marry Persephone but she didn't so he kidnapped her and took her to the underworld. Her mother stopped growing things and the world started to die and the other Gods stepped in to solve the problem. If Persephone hadn't eaten anything in the underworld then Hades would have no claim over her but she made the mistake of eating 6 pomegranate seeds. Because of this she had to marry him and every year she has to return to the underworld for 6 months. While she's away her mother becomes sad and she doesn't grow anything, causing winter to occur on earth. When her daughter returns she becomes happy and starts growing things again, causing summer time on earth. (A likely tale invented by the Greeks to explain summer and winter). **

**Now I know everyone's gotten used to my fast updates but I won't be updating until late May. I have serious exams and I need to focus on passing my Biomedical science degree. Once my exams are over I'll update regularly again. Please leave me a review, go on press the button. **


	12. Unexplainable injury

Her new room was huge and connected to her own luxury bathroom. She had a double 4 poster bed, huge wardrobe, dressing table and a full length mirror. She was delighted to find a book shelf and a small table in one corner. Being head girl wasn't that bad after all, she could definitely get used to this. She unpacked her things, changed and dived under the covers. Hermione woke feeling full of energy and her cold had completely disappeared. She hadn't had such a good sleep since she had arrived. It was great to have her own bathroom as she didn't have to queue up anymore. She removed various bottles of shampoo and toiletries from her trunk and placed them on the bathroom shelves. She got changed in front of her full length mirror and cautiously stepped out of her room. She really didn't feel like running into Tom first thing in the morning. The whole common room was empty and before her luck changed she quickly slipped through the portrait door.

She sat at her usual spot at the Ravenclaw table. She was surprised to find people of her house greeted her or smiled at her warmly. Becoming head girl had definitely changed their view of her. Eating spoonfuls of porridge she glanced towards the Slytherin table searching for Tom. She found him sitting at his usual spot at the end of the table. He was deeply focused reading a large book. Since he wasn't eating she figured he must have eaten earlier. She sneaked a few more glances. Something was seriously wrong with this picture. He always sat alone and ever since she had arrived she hadn't seen him interact with other students unless it was absolutely necessary. Hermione wondered how someone so antisocial had managed to gather a large number of followers in the future, unless he did talk to Malfoy and his group in secret. She would have to spy on him to find out for certain. She noticed Malfoy and his crew were absent from the table.

Suddenly the great Oak doors opened and in walked Malfoy followed by his boys. Malfoy locked eyes with her and sneered. He was about to walk towards the Slytherin table when his eye caught her head girl badge and he froze with an expression of disbelief. He started to walk towards the Ravenclaw table instead and his group followed. Why was Malfoy coming up to her? Wasn't he satisfied with a burnt hand?

"Morning Mudblood" Malfoy said calmly. The Ravenclaws glared daggers at him and she felt like strangling him but restrained herself. She was head girl and it wouldn't be good if she attacked him in front of the whole school. "Being head girl won't make you immune. You have to pay back for what you did" Head girl or not she knew she would lose control and curse him if provoked her any further.

"Get lost Malfoy"

"I'm afraid it isn't that simple" She suddenly noticed Malfoy removing his wand. Hermione instantly pulled out her wand and stood up. In a second they were both pointing wands at each others necks. The room became silent and every eye in the hall turned to look at them. Tom Riddle looked up from his book and narrowed his eyes at the pair. To hell with being head girl. If he tried anything she would get him back ten times worse. Another four wands pointed at her. She recognised Crabbe, Goyle and Lestrange from last time. Another boy with long brown hair was also pointing his wand but she didn't recognise him. Five on one was hardly fair but what Tom had said came back to her, it didn't matter if it was fair or not as long as you won. No surprise there that all the evil people thought alike. "I'll deal with you later and mark my words it won't be pleasant" lowering his wand he walked away and his crew followed.

Thank Merlin he had some sense. Malfoy wasn't stupid enough to attack her in front of a whole school of witnesses but he obviously wanted people to know his group was in charge since he publicly threatened her. Hermione sat down and buried her head in her hands. As if she didn't have enough to deal with and now she would have to watch out for Malfoy trying to attack her. Susan entered the hall and sat next to her.

"Hey head girl" Susan said making her look up. "What's wrong?"

"Malfoy just threatened me"

"You should be careful Maya, he never gives up"

"Great just want I needed to hear"

"Cheer up we have divination next"

"Divination" she said burying her face in her hands once more. "I hate divination"

"Why, it's great up there with all the cushions. The dimly lit candles and the aromas of incense makes the atmosphere so romantic."

"How is not being able to see properly and dying of smoke inhalation romantic?"

"Oh Maya come on, you find a negative side to everything" Susan said chewing down a toast. "We're starting crystal ball gazing today and I am so excited"

"What a waste of an hour"

"You know we have to be in pairs and it won't be that much of a waste since you get to work with Tom" she said with a mischievous glint in her eye.

"What makes you think I'm going to be paired with him?"

"Isn't that obvious"

"Not really"

"You see everyone already has a partner they always work with and the number of students in a class has always been odd. Tom likes to work alone and since there was nobody available to pair him with the professors didn't mind but now that your here he was no choice but to work with you"

"I see, so what your saying is every time we have to do something in pairs I'm always going to be paired with Tom"

"Yeah and don't you think that's great." Susan said in a high pitched voice.

"Great" she said sarcastically gulping down a glass of orange juice.

The divination class room was awful as ever. Too hot and filled with aromas that made you drowsy. Incense smoke that made your eyes water and the light so dim that you had to strain your eyes to see. The divinations professor was ridiculous as ever but she seemed saner than Trelawney. Like Susan said the professor paired her with Tom. She could see he wasn't too happy about it but he didn't complain. She sat in a corner at a low round table opposite him. The crystal ball was at the centre and he stared at the ball, completely ignoring her presence. She gazed into the ball for sometime and then she got bored. She couldn't see anything except the white crystal surface. She glanced up at him. The shadowy background and the dim candle light made his face look different. He looked hauntingly beautiful and she continued to stare at him instead of the crystal ball. He suddenly looked into her eyes and she immediately looked away. Why had she been staring at him and did she just think he was beautiful. Merlin he was the dark lord and she couldn't think stuff like that about him. It must be the smoke she reasoned with herself. It was messing with her brain somehow and making her hallucinate or something.

"Granger the ball is at the centre of the table" She felt embarrassed that he had caught her staring at him and she couldn't help it as her cheeks reddened. For the first time in her life she was grateful the divination classroom had poor lighting.

"I got bored" she said looking down at her hands.

"Bored" he said crossing his arms "More like to lazy to even try" yeah like he could see anything in that stupid crystal ball.

"Stop acting like you could actually see something"

"I might have if you hadn't broken my concentration with your staring" She felt her cheeks redden again.

"I wasn't------"

"Don't distract me again" he cut in sharply and went back to staring at the ball.

"Your wasting time on stupid made up nonsense" he looked up annoyed.

"It's not nonsense Granger but a matter of being patient and allowing your senses to open up to other possibilities"

"If you say so"

"It takes patience, focus and concentration to open up the inner eye. Someone shallow minded as you can't obviously achieve that"

"I am not----" he held up at hand to silence her.

"There's no point arguing. Stop wasting my time" he went back to staring at the ball.

Tom seriously believed in something loony like divination. Well the dark lord wouldn't have been so paranoid about a prophecy if he never believed in divination so it did make sense. The inner eye she thought looking down at the ball once again. If such a thing existed it was a good thing Tom had never learned how to open the so called inner eye. She couldn't think of anything scarier than a dark lord that could see the future. She stared at the ball trying her best to keep focused but her eyes kept wandering to random locations in the room and in the end she gave up.

At lunchtime she was studying in the library when Susan and her girls decided to join her.

"Hey Maya" Susan said pulling her book away. "Spill"

"There's nothing to say, may I have my book back" she really wanted to finish of the chapter before lunch ended.

"May I have my book back" a brown haired girl repeated making a face at her.

"This one really knows how to play innocent" a girl said flicking her loose hair back.

"It's always the quiet ones isn't it?" another girl said.

"I really don't know what your talking about" she said hoping they would go away.

"Oh come on Maya, we all saw you drooling over Tom in divination" Susan said accusingly.

"Yeah the crystal ball sure wasn't floating in the air" the brown haired girl said dramatically waving her hands high up.

"I wasn't staring at him" she said avoiding their gaze and she couldn't help it as her cheeks turned pink.

"Someone's blushing" Susan said making everyone laugh. Hermione grabbed her book and ran out of the library. She had to escape from these gossip loving, boy crazy girls. "Maya this isn't over, you can't run forever" Susan called out and all the other girls laughed. She went to the great hall but found it too noisy to concentrate and it was way too cold to read outside. In the end she decided to go down to the heads common room.

"Its you again" the woman in the painting said looking at her sourly. "Password"

Hermione fished through her bag and pulled out her heads handbook. She skimmed through the passwords page and found the password.

"Medusa" she said and the door sprang open. Thank Merlin the common room was empty. Everyone was probably still out having lunch. She spotted a comfy looking green armchair close to the fireplace and sat down. Hermione resumed reading the book and everything was going fine until the sound of a door opening made her look up. It was Tom coming out of his room carrying a pile of books. He didn't notice her presence until he was halfway across the room. Tom froze and stared at her unmoving. Hermione looked up from her book to find him looking at her expressionlessly. What's his problem now she thought?

"What do you think your doing sitting in my chair" he said in a dangerous low voice.

"Your chair" she said snapping her book shut. It's not like he owned the place. This was a heads common room meant to be shared between all the heads. She had as much as right to sit on this chair as he did.

"Move now Granger" she wasn't going to let him have his way.

"I don't see your name written on it Riddle" he violently threw his books onto the nearest table.

"Get up" he shouted drawing his wand.

"No" she shouted pulling out her own wand. He wasn't the only one that could shout and get angry.

"Maybe I was too generous last time" he said stepping closer threateningly.

"Keep in mind Riddle last time I couldn't move and this time I can" she said raising her wand higher.

"Conjunctivitis" he yelled pointing at her eyes.

"Protego" she blocked his spell instantly and he momentarily looked surprised.

"Corpus inflammare, Incendio" She managed to block the first spell but the second spell was almost touching her. She held up her book as a shield and it burst into flames. She dropped the flaming book and blocked a few more dangerous spells. Verbal and nonverbal spells moved between them at a maddening speed. Lights of various colours illuminated the room making it look like a firework display was taking place and a lot of furniture lay broken from the impact of their missed spells.

Hermione's face was screwed up in intense concentration and Tom appeared angrier than ever. "Diffindo" he shouted throwing a spell at her. She didn't manage to block it and a huge cut appeared on the top of her hand. The stinging pain from the cut was nothing, she had suffered much worse at the battle. She carried on throwing spells at him and red blood stared to flow covering her whole hand. The pain just made her more determined to hurt him. He threw two non verbal spells at her. "Levicorpus" he roared while she was busy dealing with the non verbals. He lifted her of the chair and threw her hardly against a wall. Her nose crashed into the solid and broke, causing blood to heavily pour down her face. She ignored the throbbing pain and breathed through her mouth. Gripping her wand tightly she forced herself to jump up and face him. She blocked another spell and spat out blood.

"Sanguifervana" she yelled throwing a blood boiling curse at him. He looked absolutely furious and he ran towards her blocking all of her spells.

"Impedimenta" she shouted running backwards trying to get away from him. Her foot caught on a piece of broken furniture making her trip and fall. Tom stamped his foot down hard onto her hand and Hermione screamed letting go of her wand. He kicked her wand away and painfully dragged her up by the hair.

"I've warned you before not to disobey me" he shouted forcefully tugging on her hair and she let out another scream. Her wand was gone and she had lost once again. He probably wouldn't let her of easy this time. He might even decide to kill her and all her dreams of a Voldemort free world was going to be over. All because she couldn't control her herself and let him have his own way. Why did she have to argue with him and ruin everything? What difference would it have made if the dark lord had spent the last days of his life sitting in his favourite armchair and thinking he was calling the shots? She should have kept quiet and remained on his good side, then when the opportunity arose she should have killed him of. She should have drowned her pride and kept her mission in mind. The mission was to kill the dark lord, not argue and provoke the dark lord to kill you. Too late now though, she should have realised earlier. "Your going to regret disobeying me" he shouted pushing the tip of his wand into her neck.

"Drop dead" she shouted spitting at him. If he was going to kill her she wasn't going to go out begging for mercy. He roughly tugged her hair making her cry out once more. She didn't have a wand but she didn't care anymore. She was going to die fighting with dignity and raising her left hand she punched him hard in the chest. She expected him to shout the killing curse or at least Crucio her. But to her surprise he immediately withdrew his wand and stumbled back with a blank expression. He tightly pulled his robes shut and she could have sworn she saw blood seeping through the material of his white cotton shirt. She was sure the blood hadn't been there before she had punched him and the hand she had used wasn't blood stained either. This wasn't making any sense. Where had the blood come from?

She couldn't have caused him to bleed by just punching him. She was a weak thin girl and she knew her punches couldn't have that much force.

"Get out" he screamed setting a cushion on fire. "Get out" Hermione didn't need to be told again, she was grateful to escape alive. Hastily grabbing her wand from the floor she threw the portrait door open and ran as fast as her legs could carry her.

**Yes, I know I said I wouldn't update until mid may but I couldn't help it. I have an exam tomorrow and I can't believe I'm writing fanfiction instead of revising, I think I've lost my mind. I mean it this time, I won't be updating until mid may. Anyway, this chapter will leave you with something to think about. Please review. **


	13. Nothing else matters but the mission

**Hello readers. I've finished all my exams and now I can spend time writing this story but before I get started I'd like to say a few things. I got a couple of reviews from an unsigned reviewer and they made me really mad. **

**1.) My writing may have grammatical errors and I don't mind people pointing it out as long as their nice about it. I really can't figure out what the difference is between His and He's but I corrected it in chapter 3 anyway. **

**2.) I did not like being called an idiot and I will explain why it's possible for Hermione to have Harry's wand. Hermione is in the past and the wand isn't owned by Harry yet so it is possible for her to own the wand. Yes I know that Harry won't have it in the future but he'll just have to make do with another wand. Hermione's every action in the past is actively changing the future and I can easily call you an idiot for not realising that. I hope all my readers can understand and agree with me that it is possible for her to have Harry's wand. Hermione having Harry's wand is actually very crucial to the plotline of the story but I'm not going to say more, you'll just have to wait and see.**

**3.) I find comments like "Did you even read the books" very hurtful. Of course I read all 7 books, the chapters I've written so far refer to things in HBP and the movie hasn't even come out yet. I don't even think it's possible to write proper fanfiction after just watching the movies because theirs hardly any information in the films. It's been a while since I've read the books and I made a mistake of thinking each house has a head boy or a head girl. I'm really sorry and I apologise for that. **

**Once again, I apologise to all my readers for making that mistake and for the sake of this story I would like everyone to pretend that each house has a head boy or a head girl. **

**I'm not a professional writer with a degree in English literature like J.K Rowling, I'm a student that studies Biomedical science and so my writing won't be perfect but I do try, plus I'm not getting paid to write this story. I hope everyone will forgive my grammatical errors and other writing flaws. You can point it out but just don't be rude about it. **

**Right now, I'm a very emotionally weak person and I'm feeling very suicidal. I write to get away from my problems and negative comments make me cry for hours. I just paid my sister £5 to not say anything negative to me and thank God she's not being a pain anymore. **

**I just want to request all my readers to not review if their going to be rude. I don't mind my work being criticised as long as the person isn't rude or down right horrible. If my story is really that bad then just don't read my story, and now for those of you that do want to read on. Sorry for taking up your time and let's get on with the story. **

Hermione ran towards the girl's bathroom hoping no one would come across her bloodied state. She had no intention of going to the hospital wing. Madam Whittaker would obviously make a huge deal out of her injuries and she would have to explain how she had gotten them in the first place. She pushed open the bathroom door and was glad to find it empty.

"Episkey" she said pointing the wand at her nose and it immediately became good as new. She washed away the blood and cleared away the blood stains from her clothes. She transferred the wand to her left hand and pointed at the nasty looking cut on her right hand. "Ferula" she said. She had to concentrate a little more as she wasn't using her dominant hand and after a while a bandage appeared covering her cut. Her right hand felt sore and her whole body ached from being thrown into a wall. She smoothed out her messy hair to find her head hurt. After all the hair pulling Tom had done, it was to be expected. She stared into the mirror and nothing about her looked out of the ordinary except the bandage on her hand.

She went into a cubicle and closed the toilet lid and sat down. She placed her head in her hands and started to cry. She had been so convinced she was going to die and she could still feel the fear of death in her heart. She wasn't sure what made Tom let her go and the more she thought about the mysterious appearance of blood on his shirt the more confused she became. She couldn't figure it out and it was giving her a head ache and so she stopped thinking about it. But she had realised something important today. She couldn't make the dark lord so angry that he would want to attack her or kill her. Even if it meant letting him have his own way or swallowing her pride. She had to stay alive and well to complete her mission and nothing else should matter. So she decided that from this moment onwards she would do her best to tolerate Tom and focus entirely on the goal of her mission.

Picturing Tom's lifeless corpse she wiped away her tears and walked out of the bathroom. She didn't feel like eating lunch and she decided to go back down to the library. Susan suddenly appeared in the corridor and blocked her path. She glared at Susan, if she and her girls hadn't annoyed her in the library she wouldn't have gone to the heads common room and fought with the dark lord. But then again maybe it was a good thing since it had made her realise the importance of not making Tom violent and murderous. Still, if she said one stupid thing about her and Tom she would hex her into oblivion.

"What happened?" Susan said pointing at her bandaged hand.

"Heavy book, twisted my wrist" She lied and Susan raised an eyebrow.

"I see" Susan said in a disbelieving tone.

"Now if you'll excuse me" Hermione said trying to walk past but Susan didn't move.

"Erm---Maya can you do me a favour?"

"What?" She said feeling annoyed.

"It's nothing big---can you drop this letter of to the owlery for me" Susan said holding up an envelope. "You don't have to" Susan said taking in the look on her face

"It's okay" Hermione said. "I'll do it"

"Thanks Maya" Susan said handing her the letter.

Hermione walked towards the owlery and read the writing on the envelope. It was addressed to Mrs Brewer and it was obviously a letter to Susan's Mother. She approached the entrance to the owlery and she was about to step in but what she saw made her freeze. A boy was standing in the owlery with his back to her and he was clenching and unclenching his hands. The height, the unusually long fingers and the creaseless second hand robes easily gave away who he was. She didn't need to look at his face to know that the boy was Tom Marvolo Riddle. He was obviously still angry from their fight and she had no intention of getting into another fight. Susan's letter would have to wait and she took a step back. A sudden inhuman hissing sound made her hair stand. She couldn't hear it anymore and she was sure Tom must have said something in parseltongue. Tom kicked an owl stand making the owls hoot angrily and flap about. He was definitely angry and she should leave before he noticed her. He suddenly drew his wand and made an owl drop to the floor. The owl hooted angrily trying to stand up and Tom pointed his wand at it.

"Crucio" Tom said with a cold voice. The owl's pain filled cries rang through the air and it maddeningly flapped its wings. Her heart started to beat faster as she watched him torturing the owl and she knew she should leave but she found herself frozen in fear. After her parents had been killed she would use the cruciatus curse on insects to take out her anger and it was mainly on pests they would have killed anyway. Most of the time it was on spiders since Ron was so scared of them and Harry didn't mind her using unforgivables after the death eaters killed Ginny. She continued to watch feeling sorry for the owl and the cruelty he was displaying brought back memories she wanted to forget. He was seriously angry and their fight in the heads common room was obviously the reason. He lifted the curse and a wave of relief went through her. She was glad the poor owl wasn't in pain anymore and with her heart beating unevenly she turned to leave. "Avada Kedavra" she heard him shout and her heart violently jumped in her chest. She abruptly turned to see blinding green light flash inside the owlery. The dead body of the owl dropped to the ground with a thud and Tom stared at the corpse unmoving.

Tears welled up in Hermione's eyes and she broke into a run. Crying softly she continued to run without any direction of where she was going and after some time she stopped in front of the girl's bathroom. Watching him cast the killing curse had brought back painful memories and leaning against the sink she started to cry loudly. She spent the rest of her lunchtime in the bathroom and then she went to her afternoon classes. Tom was there and he appeared completely unaffected by what had happened. She sat at the back and carried on as normal. Susan and the girls had insisted she joined them but she had politely declined. After all that had happened today she couldn't deal with their crap talk and questions. She spent most of the evening in the library until it was closing time. She was feeling very sleepy but she didn't feel like going back to the heads quarters. After what she had seen she was really scared of Tom and she didn't want to face him yet. She couldn't sleep at the Ravenclaw dorm as it would raise questions of why she wasn't staying at her head girl room and Susan probably wouldn't let her live until she satisfied all her questions. She aimlessly walked down the corridors until a broom cupboard caught her eye. She had a bad headache and she was feeling seriously sleepy. Her mind couldn't think of any other places and the broom cupboard in front of her seemed like the perfect solution. She stepped inside and shut the door. She huddled into a corner and conjured a blanket. Wrapping it around her she leaned against the wall and fell fast asleep.

Her unconscious mind fell into a deeper sleep and she started to dream. The green glowing dark mark illuminated the night sky above her house. Wand drawn Hermione started to run towards her house with a feeling of dread.

"Hermione come back" Ron yelled.

"They could still be inside lets wait for the order" Harry's voice called out. She ignored them and ran into the house. Broken and burnt furniture lay all over the place. The whole house was a mess and nothing was in its right place. No one was in the kitchen or the sitting room. She ran up the stairs with tears streaming down her face and she froze as a blood stained carpet came into view. More blood was splattered on the walls and the ceiling. She threw open her bedroom door to find it messy but empty. The bathroom was also empty and now only one room in the whole house remained unchecked. Her parent's bedroom. She walked towards the bedroom and time seemed to slow down. With her heart beating loudly against her ribs she pushed the door open with a shaky hand. Her parent's blood soaked lifeless bodies met her eyes.

"Mum, Dad" Hermione screamed. She tried to shake them awake refusing to believe what she was seeing. "Mum, Dad wake up" she shouted. "Wake up, Wake up" she continued sobbing loudly. "You can't die, you can't" she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Hermione it's no use, their dead" Harry's voice said and he tried to pull her away.

"No they can't die" she screamed pushing him away. "Mum, Dad wake up. You can't leave me all alone, you can't die"

"Granger" a distant voice called making her stir in her sleep. "Granger" the voice called more loudly and she snapped awake from her dream. She opened her eyes to find a lit wand pointing at her. She blinked several times trying to get used to the light and soon her vision cleared. Her eyes focused on a shadowy figure holding the wand and she suddenly realised it was Tom Riddle. Her heart jumped and she shrank back hugging herself. A mixture of fear and intense hatred welled up inside her. The images of her dead parents were still fresh in her mind and she felt like using the killing curse but she couldn't take her chances, she had to control herself until the time was right. How did he find her here? A shiver went down her spine as she recalled the memory of him torturing and killing the owl. What if he had tracked her down to finished what he had started at lunchtime? She continued to fearfully stare at him but his expressionless face gave away nothing. "What do you think your doing sleeping in a broom cupboard?" he said coldly.

"Go away" she whispered backing away further. "Leave me alone"

"I'm afraid I can't Granger" he said sneering at her. "It's against the rules and as head girl you should have known better" He suddenly took a step back and Hermione felt relieved that he was leaving. But her relief was short lived when she noticed him looking back and forth. He was checking to see if anyone was watching and why would he do that unless he was planning to do something to her. She jumped up and tried to shut the door. Inches before it shut he grabbed the handle and she pushed with all her might but she couldn't get it to shut. For someone thin framed, Tom Riddle had surprising physical strength and she knew he would overpower her soon. He suddenly burst inside and Hermione drew back. He looked angry and his pale cheeks were tinged pink. His face suddenly turned expressionless and he calmly shut the door behind him. The darkness inside the broom cupboard increased. The only source of light was Tom's lit wand and it didn't help that the shadows made him appear more frightening.

She recalled her newly formed rule of not provoking or angering the dark lord but in this situation she felt a great need to draw her wand, even if it did anger him further. It was a good thing the blanket was still wrapped around her and he probably wouldn't even notice. Under the blanket she slowly dipped her hand into her pocket and grasped her wand. "Don't even think about it Granger" he snapped making her freeze. His gaze was fixed on the area of the blanket covering her pocket and she wondered how he knew. He had probably seen her slight hand movements under the blanket but how could he have done so in this darkness? Then again the dark lord did seem to have uncanny abilities and she wouldn't be too surprised if he could actually see in the dark.

She had a half a mind to draw her wand and in the end she decided against it. He was already pointing his wand and her attempt would obviously be unsuccessful but without a wand she would be defenceless. It was one of those, damned if you do and damned if you don't situations but better to avoid making him angrier. "I don't think you understood me last time Granger" he said moving closer to the door. There was hardly any room left but he was pressing himself against the door to get away from her as far as possible. She suddenly felt a spark of anger at the way he was acting. Why did he always have to act like she was contaminated? The only times he had come near her was when he really had to, like when he had attacked her or when she had been petrified. She understood the dark lord didn't like getting close and she had no desire to get close to him but his behaviour was way too much. She really felt like asking him what his probably was but she kept her mouth shut knowing it would only worsen the situation.

Her heart drummed away faster as she stared into his emotionless face and her palms were starting to sweat. "I will not tolerate disobedience" he suddenly said in a low voice. He waved his wand making her blanket erupt into flames and Hermione screamed. She expected the flames to burn into her skin but she suddenly realised the burning blanket had vanished. Feeling shocked she ran her hands up and down her body just to make sure and her heart was beating so fast she could hear the vibrations in her ear drums. She looked up to find a cruel smile on his shadow tainted face and despite her fear she glared at him. "You will do as your told or you will suffer the consequences" he hissed making her glare immediately dissolve. "Accio wand" her wand flew out of her pocket and into his outstretched hand. She clenched her jaws tighter feeling more scared than ever, he wouldn't have done that if he hadn't thought she would try to defend herself and that meant he was going to do something really nasty. Was he going to Crucio her? "Vitax reducto" he suddenly said pointing at her chest and she felt her airways closing up. She tried to breath but she couldn't get any air in and soon she was making choking sounds. She punched her ribs and bent over but she still couldn't breath. Her face turned red and she fell to the floor. His cold high pitched laughter rang through the air while she withered on the floor gasping for breath.

He was probably going to suffocate her to death and leave her body in the broom closet. The pain in her lungs was unbearable and she felt her vision blurring. She desperately clawed at his shoes and he kicked her hands away. "If you ever hit me or touch me in any way, you will live to regret it" he shouted painfully jabbing the wand into her neck. "Is that understood?" he said bending down. Wheezing for breath she vigorously nodded her head to say yes. She was turning blue and she felt like she was going to faint when he suddenly lifted the spell. She lay on the floor coughing and taking in deep breaths. "Don't even think about telling anyone" he said standing up. "No one will believe you and if I find you doing otherwise, I'll cut your tongue out" he said harshly. She hugged herself and huddled into a corner. She believed every word he said, the dark lord was capable of any kind of cruelty and she felt lucky to be alive. "Get up" she shakily got up and stared at him fearfully. He opened the door and stepped outside. "Come out" she followed him feeling dizzy.

He held out her wand. She took it with a shaky hand and felt much better holding the wooden stick. "I'll drop you back" he said starting to walk and she knew by his tone it was an order. She wanted to get away from him and run in the opposite direction but she couldn't risk making him angry again. Lighting her wand she followed and she couldn't help the silent tears from trickling down her cheeks. She shouldn't let herself get scared by Tom Riddle but there was no doubt he was dangerous. She felt angry at herself for being week and helpless but it was all for the best. There was no point acting rashly and getting killed. Staying alive and killing him was more important than being brave. Their footsteps filled the silence as they continued to walk and since the castle was dead quiet and dark it had to be really late at night. A thought was bugging her and she had to ask him one question to put her mind to rest.

"How did you find me?" she whispered plucking up the courage. He didn't answer and she didn't press him further.

"I heard you shout when I was patrolling" he suddenly said. She did that often when she had nightmares and it did explain how he had found her. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw him turn to look at her. He continued to stare at her but she acted like she wasn't aware of it. Why was he looking at her like that? It was very uncomfortable and she was starting to feel scared. They arrived at the heads quarters and the woman in the painting narrowed her eyes at the pair.

"Horrible boy you've been making her cry" the woman said.

"Medusa" Tom said ignoring the woman and the door opened to let them through. No broken furniture was in sight and the common room looked like it usually did. Tom must have repaired everything. Without another word he crept up to his room and quietly shut the door.

She entered her room and lit a few candles. She changed into her nightclothes and blowing out the candles she slipped under the quilt. She rubbed her neck where he had jabbed her with the wand and it was still cried into her pillow for a while and she thought about the days events. She knew her decision to let Tom think he was in control was the right decision and her mind wandered back to seeing the mysterious appearance of blood on his shirt. She tried to come up with an explanation but sleep started to cloud her mind. It was nice to be back in her bed again and much better than sleeping in a broom cupboard. Soon she fell into a deep sleep.

**This chapter was more like a continuation of the last chapter but it's important as Hermione realises she has to let Tom think his in control. Leave reviews and I'll update as soon as I can. **


	14. Almost expelled

Hermione sat in the great hall having breakfast and reading the daily prophet. Tom was missing from the Slytherin table and Malfoy kept giving her hateful glances. She ignored Malfoy and wondered where Tom was. Someone tapped her on the shoulder and she looked up to find it was Susan.

"Maya I---I know about last night" Susan said in an excited tone. Merlin what kind of stuff was this girl going to come up with now.

"What about last night" she said nervously.

"Morgana saw you and Tom coming out of a broom closet" Susan whispered.

"Oh that" she said feeling worried. "It's not what you think Susan"

"Yeah right, why were you two in a broom closet then?" Susan smiled. She had to convince Susan that there was nothing going on.

"We were patrolling and we heard shouts coming from the closet but no one was there" Susan's smile fell.

"That's what really happened" she said in a disappointed tone. "You guy's were just inspecting a haunted closet"

"Yeah, it was probably peeves trying to scare us" she went back to reading her paper.

"Peeves is such a pain" Susan said making a face. "The other day he made me spill an ink bottle, anyway I'll catch you later" She was probably running back to tell the others about her newfound knowledge. Hermione emptied a glass of orange juice and stood up. She walked out the great hall and glanced at her wristwatch. She had 30 minutes till class started and she decided to go down to the library for a quick read. She walked down some stairs and turned into a corridor to her right.

"Miss Granger" Slughorn's loud voice sounded behind her. Hermione paused and turned around. Slughorn had a smile on his face and he was holding a large bottle.

"Morning professor" Hermione said eyeing the bottle curiously. The bottle was made of green glass and it had dark liquid inside but there were no visible labels attached.

"Good Morning to you as well" Slughorn said cheerfully. "Can you drop this of to the hospital wing for me" he said holding out the bottle towards her.

"Okay" Hermione said taking the bottle.

"5 points to Ravenclaw" Slughorn said winking at her and turned to leave.

"Professor" she said making him pause. "What is it? I mean what's inside the bottle?"

"O ho, I forgot to add the label" Slugorn pointed his wand and a label appeared. "It's Dittany" Slughorn turned to leave once again and Hermione started to walk towards the hospital wing.

She pushed open the door and walked inside. A line of empty beds met her eyes and she could hear voices conversing inside the office. She walked closer to the office door and she nearly dropped the bottle as she recognised Tom's voice. The door suddenly opened and Madam Whittaker stepped out followed by Tom holding some cotton reels. A flicker of surprise passed across his face as he noticed her and then it became expressionless.

"Maya" Madam Whittaker said excitedly. "Are you hurt?" she said in a worried tone.

"I'm fine" Hermione said. "Slughorn told me to give this to you" she said holding out the bottle.

"Ah yes the Dittany" Madam Whittaker said taking the bottle. "Mr Riddle if you could place those on that shelf" she said pointing.

"Madam I have time to make a few more" Tom said moving towards the shelf.

"You have been very helpful Mr Riddle but I insist you go down and have some breakfast." Madam Whittaker said. "You're thin as it is and Dippet would have my head if his brilliant student started to fail due to a lack of energy"

"As you wish madam" Tom said placing the cotton reels on the shelf. Madam Whittaker motioned for her to come into the office, Hermione stepped inside to find a fairly large room filled with bubbling cauldrons and various bottles. In one corner of the room a table was littered with cotton plants and a pile of seeds lay close to them.

"Why do you need cotton?" Hermione asked walking closer to the table with a puzzled expression.

"To make bandages, hospital gowns and bibs but mostly to make bandages." Madam Whittaker waved her wand and placed the plants inside a box. "Too expensive to buy from a company, it's much cheaper to make our own since the forbidden forest is filled with cotton plants." She levitated the box underneath the table. "The seeds are hard to remove from the cotton but their useful for replanting" she placed the seeds inside a jar. "It's a time consuming process making cotton reels and it requires advanced magic. It would have taken me twice as long if Mr Riddle hadn't volunteered to help"

"Volunteered" Hermione said in disbelief. Well of course the dark lord would help out to keep up the act. No wonder people never thought he could be evil, who would ever suspect the kind and helpful orphan boy?

"He's such a kind boy, bless his soul" Which part Hermione thought, that is if he had made a Horcrux and split his soul. She wasn't sure if he had made one yet. "So did you follow him here?" Madam Whittaker said smiling widely. "Were you missing your eye candy at breakfast?" Hermione looked disgusted at what she was suggesting.

"No, no it's not like that" she said stuttering. "Slughorn asked me give you the bottle, I had no idea he was here"

"Are you sure you didn't beg Horace to let you take the bottle" Madam Whittaker said raising an eyebrow.

"No of course not" Hermione said with high pitched voice. "I told you I didn't know he was here"

"Okay Maya, calm down. It's not a crime to have a crush on someone" Madam Whittaker grinned and she glared at her.

"I do not have a crush on him" Hermione hissed.

"If you say so" she said in a disbelieving tone.

"I have to go now, class is starting in 5 minutes" Hermione said opening the door.

"See you later then, come by some time" Madam Whittaker called out.

"I'll try" she said closing the door. She wouldn't see Madam Whittaker unless she had to, she had no desire to talk to someone like Susan. Honestly, what did the women see in Tom Riddle? Why couldn't they see past his beauty and notice the monster underneath? She paused as the cotton reels on the shelf caught her eyes. There were three on the shelf but she was sure she had seen him hold four. But surely if the dark lord was going to steal something it would be a dangerous potion ingredient or something useful. Why would he steal a cotton reel and what use would it be to him? She had probably made a mistake, he must have been holding three. She glanced at the clock and ran out the door. She had three minutes to get to class and all thoughts of the cotton reel vanished from her mind.

For the rest of the week she did her best to avoid making Tom very angry. Although they did argue and disagree about a lot of things she made sure it didn't get to the point where they would have to attack each other using wands. It was surprisingly more harder to remain calm than being violent. It took all her energy and effort to restrain herself from her usual behaviour. Sometimes she thought she would burst from the pressure but so far it had been going well.

She arrived early for transfiguration and Albus Dumbledore stared at her for a while. She kept her mind blank as possible and sat at the back. Tom entered the class room and looked at Dumbledore with pure hatred clearly showing in his eyes. Hermione knew he hated Dumbledore since he was the only person that knew what he really was. Tom sat in the middle row. In all his other classes he always sat right at the front but this was the only class he ever sat in the middle. Dumbledore looked at him disappointingly then made writing appear on the black board. They were meant to turn water into an ice sculpture of anything they desired. Dumbledore demonstrated by turning water into an ice statue of a phoenix. Everyone seemed impressed even Hermione but Tom stared at his fingernails with a bored expression.

"This is a complex spell that requires great concentration and focus." Dumbledore said turning the statue back into water. "It can take months of practice to achieve any results but you mustn't be discouraged by----" Tom coughed loudly interrupting. "Is there something you wish to say Mr Riddle?" Dumbledore said with an irritated expression.

"No sir" Tom said with a voice that almost sounded mocking. Dumbledore carried on speaking and Hermione noticed one of his hands was clenched into a fist as he stared ahead blankly. They were told to pair up and practice the spell. Hermione knew she would have to work with Tom and this time she didn't wait to be told she had to. Tom must have decided to do the same as he came up to her table when she was gathering her things to move to his table. "Granger lets stay here" Tom said pulling out a chair. She always moved to join him at the front but this time he had moved to join her at the back. It obviously had something to do with him hating Dumbledore and wanting to be far away from him as possible. She didn't say anything and put her things back down. He kept a distance of two chairs between them and started to work on the spell. She pointed her wand at the water inside her cup and tried to get it to rise up but it swirled around instead.

"Aqualevionax" she said trying again but no result. She glanced towards Tom to see the water from his cup rising up in a straight line. His eyes looked deeply focused and his jaws were clenched tight as he attempted to shape the water into a sphere. He was already on the next stage and she hadn't even managed the first thing. How did he get the water to rise up? She tried again with more determination and a few drops came up but she needed the whole thing. After a few more tries she managed to get the water to rise up in a straight line but shaping it into a sphere was proving almost impossible. She looked towards Tom again to find a watery snake shape hovering above his cup. He slowly moved his wand unblinking and the shape became more detailed showing its scaly structure. Soon piercing eyes and fangs in its open mouth were also visible. Typical that the dark lord would chose a snake when he could have chosen anything in the world but it was still eye catching to look at.

"Petrihypoficus" he said and the watery snake turned into ice. Hermione stared at it transfixed. The sculpture was so perfect that it appeared to be made of crystal instead of ordinary ice. He gently placed it onto the table and lightly traced a finger across its delicate structure. Why did he have to be so good at everything? She tried to shape the water into a sphere again and she was almost there when it suddenly exploded in her face. What the hell? Why did that happen, was she that bad? She rapidly blinked and wiped away the water with the back of her hand. Most people were laughing at her and right now she wished she was somewhere else. Tom Riddle looked at her expressionlessly and then he went back to staring at his ice sculpture. He had probably done it and she was about to confront him but she stopped herself in time. She was supposed to do her best to avoid making the dark lord angry not the other way around. Accepting defeat she was about to sit down when she caught Malfoy smirking at her. His wand was pointing towards her and his boys were making gestures of water splashing into her face. So it wasn't Tom, it had been Malfoy. Feeling angry she didn't see the need to restrain herself when it came to Malfoy. She walked right over to him and pointed her wand in his face. Everyone in the class paused to look at them.

"What are you going to do about it mudblood" Malfoy whispered lowly so only she could hear. She had been planning to splash water on his face and walk back but calling her a mudblood made her forget everything. She wanted to hurt him in the worst possible way.

"Incendio" she screamed.

"Protego" he blocked her.

"Miss Granger stop this at once" Dumbledore shouted. Everyone started to gather around as they duelled dangerously and it didn't take them long to switch to dark curses. She blasted a table into pieces and threw a hex at him. "Expeliarmus" Dumbledore shouted pointing his wand. Fighting in the war had taught her how to duel with more than one opponent and she easily blocked Dumbledore and Malfoy at the same time. Everyone gasped in amazement and even Tom seemed impressed. Dumbledore looked shocked for a moment and then recovered.

"Sevanamithax" Malfoy didn't manage to block it and his whole face erupted with large purple boils. He screamed and dropped his wand. "Don't ever call me mudblood" Hermione shouted kicking him. She wasn't done with him. She wanted to hurt him even more. The word mudblood was more than just an insult to her. It brought back memories of death eaters torturing her and calling her mudblood. Bellatrix's face, her parent's lifeless bodies and images of thousands lying dead because their blood wasn't pure all came to her mind. That one word was powerful enough to make all her emotions connected with the war resurface. "Sanguifervana" she shouted without caring to think what kind of spell she was using.

"No" Malfoy screamed with fear evident in his voice.

"Protego" Dumbledore shouted blocking the spell in time.

"Dermaferva----" Hermione started.

"Expeliarmus" a male voice suddenly shouted and the wand flew out of her hand. She hadn't thought anyone else would intervene and feeling shocked she turned to find Tom had disarmed her.

"Take Mr Malfoy to the hospital wing immediately" Dumbledore's voice rang out. Malfoy's boys picked up the crying blond and rushed out the door. "Class dismissed" everyone walked out of class talking and pointing at her. Everyone seemed afraid of her and the Slytherin's looked at her curiously. Tom stood pointing his wand at her and kept on staring at her blankly. She glared at Tom wanting to hit him. How dare he intervene but of course he would try and save his secret death eater friend. "Thank you Tom" Dumbledore said looking uncertain.

"It was my duty sir" he said automatically still looking at her. Even though she would appear crazy Hermione couldn't help but laugh out aloud.

"Of course you would consider it a duty to save all your Slytherin friends" Hermione said angrily. His expression immediately darkened and he looked angry. Oops she shouldn't have said that. After all he did want to keep his friendship with Malfoy and the crew a secret, especially from Dumbledore and now she had said it out aloud.

"Miss Granger you are in serious trouble" Dumbledore said looking at her piercingly. "Follow me to the headmaster's office" he said opening the door. "Tom I insist you come along, your actions will not go unrewarded" This was wrong. Tom shouldn't be rewarded for saving Malfoy.

By the time she arrived in Dippet's office her anger had vanished and she started to realise the seriousness of her actions. Dippet had shouted at her for using dark magic and blocking a member of the staff. He had threatened to exclude her at first. She had apologised repeatedly blaming it on depression caused by her parent's death and Dippet had softened. In the end he had given her detention for a whole year every Friday evening. She was glad not to be expelled. The event made her add one more rule to her existing one. She had to control her temper in public even if it was Malfoy. Whatever she did she would have to do it discreetly and undetected. Tom was praised and earned 60 points for Slytherin.

She sat at the lunch table feeling miserable. Everyone including Susan and the girls were avoiding her. All she had done was used a few dark spells and everyone was afraid of her. The dark spells hadn't even touched Malfoy but they acted like it had. She had detention every Friday of the week for a year and people were whispering about her. She couldn't take sitting in the great hall anymore and she went down to the heads common room. It was empty and feeling that she couldn't keep up appearances any longer she sank to the floor and started to cry. After a while a huge spider crawled along the floor and looking at the spider she started to cry harder. It reminded her of Ron and his fear of spiders. She felt angry at the spider for making her remember. Everything that had happened today was making her want to hurt something. During the war whenever she got really angry she would use unforgivable curses on death eaters and right now she was in one of those moods. The spider was the enemy and it would pay for making her remember. Crawling nearer she raised her wand and pointed at it.

"Crucio" she shouted and the spider began to wither and shake. She kept her wand pointed at it for a long time and it made her feel a little better. She smiled as she continued to torture it.

"Oh my god" a voice said making her freeze. She looked up to find the Gryffindor head girl Cynthia Bones looking at her with a frightened expression. She immediately withdrew her wand and stood up.

"You don't understa----"

"Please don't hurt me, I won't tell anyone" Bones said hysterically before running out the room. She sank back onto the ground feeling even worse. Bones was now scared of her. She would probably tell everyone and they would become even more afraid of her.

"Avada Kedavra" she murdered the spider in a fit of rage and placing her head in her hands she started to cry her eyes out. She was crying so loudly that she didn't hear the sound of someone coming inside.

"Granger" Tom's voice said making her head snap up. "Get of the floor"

"Like your favourite armchair do you own the floor as well" she snapped.

"Don't raise your voice at me" She forced herself not to answer back. She kept on staring at the dead spider wishing it was Tom's corpse instead.

"Didn't you hear me? Get of the floor" he shouted making her jump up. She glared at him and tightened the grip on her wand. She really felt like fighting him and it took all her strength to restrain herself. She decided to go up to her room before her anger got the better of her. With watery eyes she couldn't see properly and she tripped on the first stair. She hit her right elbow hard on the stone floor making her cry out. She heard footsteps coming towards her. "Granger stop being so weak and move" She lay on the floor in a heap not bothering to get up and continued to cry. She did not want to cry in front of the dark lord but she couldn't help the tears from falling. He levitated her onto the couch and left her there. He sat in his green armchair and started to read a book while she calmed herself down.

She suddenly noticed him looking down at the floor and her eyebrows knitted together in worry as she realised his gaze was fixed on the dead spider. It wasn't against the law to use unforgivables on animals and insects but she didn't want him to know that she was capable of casting it on them. Casting it on humans took a lot of effort and emotional control but he would obviously suspect her now. How could she carelessly use the killing curse in the common room? Maybe she was getting worried for no reason, all it did was indicate that she was into dark magic and it's not like he hadn't known that before. He had seen her read up on dark spells in the library and she had used a lot of them during their fight. Even today she had just used a bunch of dark spells on Malfoy. So he wasn't exactly finding out anything new and her interest in dark magic didn't really giveaway where she came from or what she was intending to do.

"Interesting" he said levitating the spider into the air. He suddenly locked eyes with her and he kept on staring at her unblinking. Being used to his staring she wouldn't have been disturbed if she hadn't noticed a strange look in his eyes. She had never seen him look at her like that before and she couldn't quite place what it meant. "You used the killing curse" he suddenly said looking at the spider and she started to feel panicky. Merlin, he knew. How did he know?

"What makes you think that?" She said in a forced calm voice. "It could have just died naturally"

"Do you think I'm stupid" he hissed punching the armrest and she bit the inside of her cheeks. "A spider as large as this doesn't just crawl into the middle of a room and die naturally" he said in a calm voice. "There are no injuries on its body and it was lying on the same place as you were. The truth isn't so hard to figure out, well at least to someone with brains" he said sneering at her. There was no point denying it now and she could almost feel sweat forming on her forehead.

"It's not illegal to kill a spider" she said with a controlled voice. He expressionlessly stared at her for a while and she crossed her fingers feeling uncomfortable.

"It isn't against the law but using unforgivables is against Hogwarts rules" he suddenly said. "You obviously haven't bothered to read the Hogwarts rules or the heads handbook" he said with a disapproving tone. "And Dippet thought you were fit enough to be head girl" Anger filled her up and she couldn't control herself from answering back.

"So you're the golden head boy that always follows the rules" she snapped. "Torturing people in empty classrooms and broom cupboards is within the rules, is it?" He smiled at her coldly and made the dead spider move up and down.

"It's important to be aware of the rules but that doesn't mean I'm going to actually follow them" he started to make the spiders legs move about and she wondered how he was doing that since it was dead. "Or be stupid enough to get caught breaking them." With a wave of his wand he set the spider on the floor and crossed his arms. He stared at the spider and to her horror the spider started to crawl towards her. How was that possible? The spider couldn't be alive, she had just killed it. The dark lord couldn't resurrect things could he? That was impossible, nothing could bring the dead back to life unless you had a Horcrux and the spider definitely didn't have one.

"It's dead, how are you doing that?" she said with a high pitched voice and she moved to the other end of the couch.

"I modified the inferi making spell" he said making the moving spider vanish. Now it all made sense, although controlling corpses was a terrible thing she couldn't help but be impressed. The inferi spell was difficult and it must have taken a lot of effort to modify "But someone like you wouldn't be able to understand something so obvious" She felt her anger flare up at his words and she couldn't help what she said next.

"You must have killed a lot of things to master that spell" she immediately regretted saying that but his blank face didn't betray a flicker of emotion. He slowly clenched his hands into fists and her heart beat speed up knowing he was angry.

"Yes I've killed a lot" he said in a cold high pitched voice that sounded so uncannily like Voldemort's that it sent chills down her spine. "Killing animals doesn't matter" he said venomously and she shuddered hearing the raw hatred in his voice. Is that what he thought of the people he had killed? Did Voldemort think of them as mere animals when he mercilessly slaughtered them? "You said it yourself" he said in a calmer tone. "You should try a larger animal, their more satisfying in relieving anger" he said unclenching his fists. "You can actually watch the life drain away from their eyes, knowing that you're the only one that can stop it" he said in a low voice and she stared at his blank face feeling sick. "The power to stop death itself in your hands" he finished in a high pitched voice and she shivered as he sounded like Voldemort again. He was definitely crazy and no doubt obsessed with gaining immortality. He went back to reading his book and she rubbed her hurting elbow but the pain didn't fade. "Granger" he suddenly said making her look up. "You managed to block Dumbledore" he said watching her intensely. Knots of worry formed in her stomach but it didn't really prove anything other than she was skilled.

"So what if I did?" she said sounding indifferent when her heart was hammering away.

"The only student that can block Dumbledore is me" he said narrowing his eyes at her.

"You duelled Dumbledore" she said disbelievingly. She knew Dumbledore and Voldemort had fought each other a lot but she hadn't expected him be powerful enough at this age.

"Duelling club" he said making her relax. So he wasn't powerful enough to fight Dumbledore yet. He had just blocked him in some duelling club sessions and from the sour look on his face, he had obviously lost. "Now you're the second student that can block him" he sounded pleased. "Dumbledore can't be as powerful as he thinks if someone like you can block him" Hermione reddened with anger but she didn't say anything. "But then again he must have been taken by surprise and he probably wasn't even using his full ability."

He went back to reading his book and for a while they just sat in silence "You shouldn't let Malfoy get to you like that" he suddenly said looking up. She glared at him and her insides burned with anger as she recalled the memory of him disarming her.

"I would have got him if you hadn't interfered" she whispered instead of shouting at him.

"If I hadn't interfered you would have been expelled" he said glaring at her. "According to rule number 66, section C. The use of class 3 dark spells on a fellow student results in a permanent exclusion. The curses you seem to be so fond of using publicly happens to be in class 3, and you would have hit Malfoy if I hadn't prevented you" This was ridiculous. He had clearly done it to save his secret friend and now he was making it out like he had done it in her best interest. Like he even cared about her.

"The real reason you stopped me is to save your Slytherin pal"

"I hate Malfoy" he said venomously. The hate in his voice was so realistic it sounded genuine. He was obviously using his Order of Merlin worthy acting skills.

"So you decided to save me out of the goodness of your heart" she said sarcastically.

"Of course not" he snapped throwing his book on the table. "I don't like your tone Granger" he said walking over to her and she pressed herself further against the couch knowing he was in a violent mood. "I did you a favour and you should be more grateful" he shouted stabbing his wand into her hurt elbow and a cracking sound echoed through the room. Hermione screamed and clutched her broken elbow. Tears formed in her eyes as a stinging pain shot up her arm and he smiled at her coldly.

Normally at this point she would have drawn her wand but she repeated her rules loudly in her mind and took a couple of deep breaths. "I have my reasons Granger" he suddenly whispered and his words made all the sensations of pain vanish from her mind.

"What reasons?" she couldn't help keep the fear out of her voice.

"Now's not the time?" he said glancing at the clock. "We have a class soon"

He picked up his book and resumed reading. Stupid evil git, she wasn't going to believe his lame I hate Malfoy theory. Like he would ever really do her a favour, it was just a cover story. A minute ago he had just poked his wand into her elbow. It was clear that he hated her. There probably wasn't any reasons he wanted to keep her around. He was just saying that to distract her from thinking about the real reason he had saved Malfoy. She hoped she was right but a part of her felt scared that he might know more about her than he was letting on. Her arm was really starting to hurt and it looked like it was at an odd angle. It was probably broken, she should go see Madam Whittaker and explain how she fell down the stairs.

"I think you broke my arm Riddle" she said using her good hand to open the door.

"Granger when I break an arm it's usually chopped in two" he said without looking up from his book. She shut the door and the woman in the portrait gasped.

"Did that horrible boy break your arm?"

"Unfortunately I think he did Persephone" she said holding her arm carefully. "About what I said the other week, I never meant to say that about you and Hades"

"Don't worry all is forgiven" she said cheerfully.

"I'll see you later" Hermione rushed of to the hospital wing.

"Remind you of anyone dear" Persephone said turning to Hades.

"Us in our early day" Hades said grinning.

"I wonder" Persephone said rubbing her hands. "This could be an interesting year"

**A huge thank you to the people that explained the grammer thing and I hope this chapter has less errors. Just to clear things up, Hermione isn't weak and she's perfectly capable of fighting back but everytime she picks a fight with him she takes a risk of getting seriously injured. She dosen't see the point in risking her life when the important thing is to kill him, not fight him. She's trying to tolerate him and make him think he's in control while she works on her goal. **

**I made another picture and my picture making skills have greatly improved. The links on my profile page and please leave comments. Now, I have the flu and I may not update as fast but I'll try. Don't forget to review. **


	15. Bad birthday

Hermione stared at the calendar in her room feeling really sad. It was September the 19th and her birthday. She was 17 today and none of her friends and family were with her. Tears flowed down her cheeks as she touched her neck recalling Ron's locket. She wiped away the tears and forced herself to get ready for morning lessons. People were starting to forget about her attacking Malfoy last week and while they were nice she could tell they were still afraid of her. Susan and the girls were talking to her again but they seemed a bit distant.

She was having breakfast in the great hall when an owl landed in front of her with a letter. She took the letter and stuffed it in her pocket. She was feeling too depressed and she couldn't be bothered to read it. Detention every Friday evening wasn't as bad as she had thought it would be. She had to help Slughorn in his office and the potion's dungeon. Slughorn turned out be very interesting company. She had learnt a lot not only about potions but also about the latest happenings in the ministry and the celebrity world. Politics really interested her and she was always eager to learn of new laws and protests. Normally she avoided listening to mundane things like what was happening in the life of a famous witch or wizard but she found herself becoming drawn to gossips and scandals. Every week she found herself looking forward to visiting him and catching up on the latest.

She walked into the potions class room and Slughorn greeted her warmly.

"I couldn't wait to tell you until Friday" Slughorn whispered. "They found evidence to suggest O'Malley killed his wife"

"Really but the prophet said-----"

"One of my contacts at the auror department told me, I'll tell you more on Friday"

Hermione sat near Tom and kept a distance of two seats like he always preferred. He was looking at her in that creepy way and although it annoyed her she didn't say anything.

"What were you and Slughorn talking about" he suddenly asked.

"None of your business Riddle" he was probably feeling threatened by the idea that she was becoming Slughorn's favourite. He glared at her and then he started to stare at the wall ahead. Soon they were making a potion together and for the past 2 weeks she had let him prepare it without giving him any trouble. His adjustments and additions continued to impress her. She didn't know how he knew what to do or where he got his ideas from. She watched him add in 2 drops of liquid silver when it wasn't listed in the instructions. Normally she didn't ask questions but this time she couldn't help it. "How do you know what to add?"

"None of your business Granger"

"Fine Riddle I'll tell you what Slughorn told me" he looked up from cutting ingredients. "His got inside information, there's evidence that O'Malley killed his wife"

"O'Malley did it" Tom said with a tone of disbelief. "But it really looked like Riley had done it" he carried on chopping the ingredients leaving Hermione surprised. The dark lord read stuff like that. Well everyone reads the prophet and he must soak up the non-important stuff as well.

"So are you going to tell me?"

"Tell you what Granger"

"How do you know what to add?"

"I never promised anything" he smiled at her coldly and she glared at him.

She walked down the corridor at lunchtime and remembered receiving a letter. Deciding to read it she pulled it out and tore open the envelope. It was a letter from Dippet wishing her a happy birthday and telling her he was sorry for her parent's death. Someone suddenly snatched the letter out of her hands. She looked up to find it was Malfoy and his crew.

"Give it back" she hissed drawing her wand.

"Patience is a virtue Granger" he said pointing his wand and the rest of his boys drew their wands as well.

"Accio letter" Lestrange blocked her spell. She tried to snatch it back but Malfoy was much taller than her and everyone laughed at her pathetic attempts. Malfoy read her letter and then he passed it to Lestrange.

"I wish I could say happy birthday but I regret to say your birthday will be anything but happy" Malfoy said twirling a finger around his pony tail. "We can't let the birthday girl leave without a present" Malfoy said sneering.

"Give me the letter and get lost" Hermione shouted.

"Or what Granger, you're outnumbered and you're going to pay for everything" Malfoy said pointing his wand. True that there were five people against her but she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

"Incendio" Lestrange said making her letter burst into flames and a pile of ash fell onto the floor. A chorus of laughter sounded from Malfoy's group and Hermione furiously started to throw harmful spells at them.

"You can have the letter back only it's not a letter anymore" Crabbe said laughing.

"If that's not the letter then where's the letter" Goyle said sounding confused.

"It's a pile of ash now" Crabbe answered. "But wait is that the same as the letter or---"

"Shut up idiots" Avery snapped blocking one of her spells.

"Start defending yourselves you thick heads" Lestrange shouted as he stopped a spell from hitting Crabbe. "Next time I won't bother"

"Your parents are dead" Malfoy said in a mock sorry voice. "Poor orphan Granger"

"Shut up" she shouted.

"An orphaned mudblood" he said laughing. "What's the matter Granger, no presents this year?"

"Orphan mudblood" they all started to chant loudly and Hermione couldn't help it as tears started to stream down her cheeks. No one was watching and she could risk using dark spells without getting expelled.

"Sanguifervana" she roared but Malfoy was ready for her. She managed to stupefy the others leaving only Malfoy and Lestrange.

"I have to say for a mudblood you are very good at duelling" Malfoy said throwing a hex at her and she blocked him. While she was disarming Lestrange, Malfoy threw a skin burning curse at her and she missed. She cried out as it hit her hand and she accidentally dropped her wand. Malfoy knocked her onto the floor. He kicked her hard in the stomach and Hermione gasped as he knocked the breath out of her. Lestrange picked up his wand and threw a stinging hex at her making her cry out once again. "Mublood whore" Malfoy yelled kicking her again and Hermione screamed in pain.

"Drop dead Malfoy" Hermione shouted trying to crawl away.

"You're not going anywhere until you learn your place" Lestrange said blocking her path.

"Think your superior do you" Hermione hissed. "Your nothing but scum" she spat on Lestrange's shoes. Lestrange tried to kick her in the face and she moved sideways. His foot painfully collided with her shoulder and burning pain seared through her shoulder blade. She dropped back onto the floor.

"You're nothing but a dirty bloodied, worthless orphan" Malfoy shouted kicking at her knees and Hermione screamed as her knee caps stung.

"Get away from her" a voice suddenly roared. She looked up with tear filled eyes to find it was Tom. His wand was drawn and his expression was frightening.

"Riddle" Malfoy said backing away with fear clearly showing on his face. "This is nothing to do with you" he said shakily and huddled closer to Lestrange.

"Are you questioning my authority Malfoy" Tom said grabbing Malfoy by the collar and Lestrange ran. He slammed Malfoy into the wall and grabbed a fistful of his blonde hair. "Do I need to remind you of what I can do to people that disobey me?" Tom shouted violently tugging on his hair.

"Not the hair" Malfoy said trembling with fear. "Please, not the hair" Tom yanked his hair even harder making Malfoy scream. Hermione slowly crept towards her wand unnoticed. Maddening anger was flowing through her and she wanted to hurt Malfoy in the worst possible way. "I'm sorry Riddle, I'm sorry" Malfoy shouted and Tom threw him onto the floor. Malfoy jumped up and ran. Hermione stood up swaying and pointed her wand at Malfoy's back.

"Cruci----" She started and her wand suddenly flew out of her hand. She angrily turned to find Tom pointing his wand at her. He stared at her and his face had a mixture of surprise and anger. She crumpled to the floor and tears started to stream down her cheeks. While she lay there crying Tom revived the stupefied boys and they all fled in fear.

"Get up Granger" Tom said walking over to her.

"Get lost Riddle" He grabbed her by the sleeve and dragged her of the floor. He pulled her down the corridor and she tried to get away. "Let go" she shouted trying to pull her arm away but his grip was too strong. She tried to slow down and he violently tugged on her sleeve making the material of her robes painfully cut into her neck. After a while she gave up and followed him mindlessly. Persephone looked alarmed and called Hades as they approached the heads quarters.

"Horrible boy what have you done to her" Persephone shouted.

"Medusa" he said ignoring Persephone. He threw her onto the couch and slammed the door shut. "Are you insane Granger, trying to use an unforgivable in the corridor" he shouted. "Forget getting expelled, that could have gotten you a lifetime in Azkaban"

"Why the hell do you care?" she snapped. He must be pissed that she had attempted to crucio his right hand man. She doubted he would have told Malfoy to let her go if they hadn't been fighting in the corridor. He had probably been trying to keep up his head boy act in case a professor came along.

"I don't" he yelled. "Do you think I really care if you put your life in danger for someone worthless like Malfoy?" Here we go again. The same old stupid I hate Malfoy cover story twice in a row. "I wouldn't give a damn if you got expelled or hanged but you know something I don't" he said walking closer. Now she was starting to get real scared. If he didn't stop her to save Malfoy then why did he save her? He had said he had a reason last time and she had thought he had been bluffing but right now he sounded dead serious. What had he found out about her?

"I don't know what you're talking about" she said looking him straight in the eye.

"Don't you" he said sinking to her level. "From what I witnessed today it looks like you know how to use unforgivables on people" She knew he couldn't be after the knowledge on how to use unforgivables and he was obviously building up to something.

"Theirs nothing wrong with being interested in black magic" she said looking down at her hands. Once she had thought it was wrong to learn about black magic but over time her views had changed. She didn't see the harm in being knowledgeable in the black arts and it was better to know what the enemy could throw at you. The war had taken her further closer to darkness and completely shattered her view of right and wrong. It didn't matter what kind of magic you used as long as you won. The death eaters were merciless and after her parents died she couldn't see how it was wrong to use unforgivables on evil people that really deserved it.

"I completely agree. There is no good or evil and only power." He said with a high pitched voice and his eyes lit up with a strange glint. Hermione felt a chill spreading down her spine. She had once heard Voldemort say those exact words to Harry during one of the attacks. "Considering how stupid you are, it is almost admirable to find that you don't think yourself too weak to seek power." Was that his twisted way of complimenting her? That was probably the closest thing she would ever get as a compliment from him. "You have enough power and skill to use unforgivables and--"

"You want me to teach you how to use unforgivables on people" she wasn't supposed to know his past and she thought it would be suspicious if she didn't question it. Besides she wanted to see how he would react. He let out a cold high pitched laughter and Hermione shrank back further. It reminded her too much of future Voldemort. If there was one thing that remained completely the same between Voldemort and Tom, it was the laughter.

"You have no idea how skilled I am at using those" he smirked at her. "I was going to say, since you are powerful enough to master unforgivables I'm sure you could have managed to achieve something far more complex. I want to know how you did it"

"Did what?"

"Get past the Hogwarts barriers" She felt knots form in her stomach. So that's the real reason the dark lord didn't want her to get expelled. He wanted her around to question her and know the secret of passing through the barriers. Stupid selfish idiot, she should have known he was after something like that. To bad there was no secret method that she knew but he couldn't know about the locket. That would reveal she was from the future and jeopardise the mission.

"Riddle you were there on the night I was being questioned. I don't know how" he suddenly drew his wand and poked it into her neck.

"I think you do Granger"

"I just woke up here, I have no idea how I got here"

"You can tell me nicely or things can turn nasty" he said poking the wand further into her neck.

"I have no idea"

"If you don't tell me soon your skin's going to start burning off" She felt the tip of his wand slowly starting to heat up.

"Please, I have no idea" he obviously thought she was the type that would confess under torture. He had no idea what kind of torture she had experienced in the war and it was nothing compared to what he was proposing to do. She had never cracked under pressure and given away information to death eaters but she had never come across the dark lord. Voldemort had the ability break down the strongest mind barriers and rip the necessary information out of a person's head. He achieved this using an advanced legilimency technique that required the use of a wand and only advanced occlumency with a wand could block it. She had no idea if Tom was capable at this age and if he was, he could easily use it on her. She could block wand less legilimency but she had no wand to block advanced legilimency cast with a wand.

He lowered his wand and bore his eyes into her. She knew he was trying to use legilimency and she easily blocked him with her occulumecy shield. She had read about an advanced occulumency technique that lets you project certain thoughts and memories while shielding the others. She had never used it before and if she did it incorrectly she could expose her whole mind but she had to risk it. He might know the advanced technique and any minute now he could use it on her. Keeping the rest of her mind blank as possible she brought forward the memories of her confusion when she had arrived. She filled her head with thoughts of the fact that she really had no idea how to get past the barriers and still didn't know how to get past them. She kept on repeating it loudly in her mind while blocking the thoughts of the locket with great concentration. His forehead creased and his expression changed to reflect anger. All the things he had sensed from her mind were true and now Tom also knew it was true. Breaking eye contact he punched the floor and Hermione took in a deep breath feeling relieved. Now that he was convinced she really had no idea he wouldn't try anything else.

"You really don't know do you" he said looking at her.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you Riddle"

"All those times I could have gotten rid of you for good" he snapped pressing the wand into her neck again. Even though it would make him angrier she couldn't help but smile and his expression turned murderous.

"Don't worry Riddle, I won't forget your advice and get expelled." he painfully dug the wand in deeper making her wince. "I should learn to play dirty just like you and do everything behind closed doors" The common room door suddenly opened. Bones and Longbottom stepped inside holding hands and it was obvious from the way they were looking at each other that they were dating. Tom managed to lower his wand in time but he was still kneeling in front of her. Longbottom stared at them concerned while Bones looked frightened. Hermione knew she was thinking about the time she had seen her crucio the spider.

"Get away from him" Bones suddenly screamed drawing her wand. Riddle looked surprised while Hermione stared at Bones opened mouthed. Bones couldn't be serious, she actually thought she was attacking Tom when it was the other way around.

"Calm down sugar" Longbottom said. "Let's not jump to conclusion before we know what's actually going on"

"William you don't understand. She's evil" Bones said lifting her wand higher. Tom raised an eyebrow at Hermione and she glared at him. The epitome of evil was sitting at her feet but she was getting accused of being evil and him the victim.

"Cynthia put the wand down, your over reacting" Longbottom said lowering her wand. "Riddle is everything alright" he said stepping forward. Noticing Hermione's burnt hand Tom touched his wand onto it making her wince. She had forgotten about Malfoy burning it. After all the torture sessions she had gone through she could tolerate most mild forms of pain.

"Nothing to worry about Longbottom." Tom said. "Malfoy's burnt Granger's hand and I'm just healing it" a blue light came out of his wand and her burnt skin healed instantly.

"See doll you were just jumping to conclusions" Longbottom said putting an arm around Bones. Still looking unconvinced Bones pulled away from Longbottom and ran up to her room.

"Your wand Granger" Tom said holding out her wand and she took it.

"Malfoy and his lot are very hard to control" Longbottom said. "Good work Riddle"

"Thank you Longbottom" Tom said standing up and dusting his robes.

"You alright Granger" Longbottom said.

"Fine" she said gloomily putting her wand away.

"I'm sure she didn't mean to call you evil" Longbottom said. "I apologise on her behalf"

"It's okay" she said standing up.

"Riddle when's the next heads meeting?" Longbottom asked.

"Next week, I'll let you know the day and time" With a nod Longbottom disappeared into his room. Tom turned around and smirked at her but his eyes remained cold.

"What's so funny Riddle" she hissed.

"She thought you were attacking me" he let out a cold high pitch laughter making Hermione cringe. "Come on Granger don't you think that's funny."

"Everyone thinks you're such a good boy" She said in a loud angry voice. "No one seems to be able to see past your fake image so forgive me if I fail to see the fun part"

"Well I found it highly amusing" he said stepping closer. "It just shows how good I am at keeping up the act" He smiled at her coldly.

"You can act all you want Riddle but I will always be able to see right through you" his smile immediately dissolved. "You can't hide from me" Hermione said in a determined voice and she immediately regretted it. She shouldn't have said all those things. He might get all violent again and she wasn't supposed to make him her surprise instead of attacking her he took a step back and she could have sworn he had looked alarmed for a second but now his face was expressionless.

"You don't scare me Granger" he said boring his eyes into her. "You only see what I want you to see" He calmly walked up the stairs and one of his steps seemed a bit unsteady but he immediately recovered. Hermione wasn't sure if she had imagined it or if it had actually happened. He shut his door noiselessly when she had been expecting him to loudly slam it shut. Did that mean he wasn't angry with her? Because whenever he was angry he always shut the door loudly or clenched his hands into fists. Tom had always been hard to read and now she had no idea what he was feeling, not that she really cared about what he felt. But it was always good to know what kind of mood he was in so she could be extra careful not to send him over the edge. She had afternoon classes with him soon and she decided she wouldn't say much. He couldn't be in a good mood after he had found out she didn't know anything about getting past the barriers.

Rubbing her neck she walked up to her room and she could feel a small bump on the place he had poked. She entered her room and sat on her bed. She looked at her healed hand and touched it lightly. He had used a very advanced spell that only qualified healers could manage and even she couldn't manage something like that. She had attempted it during the battle and while she could stop the burning sensation she couldn't heal the skin. She suddenly found herself jealous of his abilities. He was too perfect to be true and no one could be 100% perfect. Everyone had a weakness and she knew what his was. His madness to dominate the word and become immortal. She rubbed her stomach and it hurt. Malfoy's kicks had been hard and who knows what shape she would have been in if Tom hadn't come along. From the way they were scared of Tom it was obvious to her that he was in charge of them. Well now she knew the real reasons behind his actions. He had wanted to save Malfoy and find out how she had gotten past the barriers. It's not like the dark lord would ever care about anyone without selfish reasons like gaining more power and knowledge.

**A huge thank you to all my reviewers. I know people think Tom's too mean and cruel but he's Tom Riddle. I can't have him being all lovey dovey because that would be out of character for him and I always like keeping my characters in character. He's not mean to Hermione because he enjoys particularly torturing her, he doesn't like people disobeying him and he always likes to be in control. Anyone else threatening his control or standing up to him would get the same treatment. ****There will be romance in this story otherwise I wouldn't have added romance to the genre but I have to make it all believable and justify it. Leave reviews and I'll update as soon as I can. **


	16. Time is running out

It was the last week of October. For the past month Hermione had worked hard and kept her cool around Tom. She had gotten used to the way he liked to keep his distance and the way he liked to be controlling. They competed in class as usual and Tom always managed to get 1% above her, no matter how hard she worked. They argued a lot and no matter how much she tried she couldn't help answering back but she always stopped before it got out of hand. Most of the time he insulted her and she always let him have his way. Not once had she provoked him to draw his wand and if they weren't verbally attacking each other they worked together quite well, not that any of them ever would admit it. They had always worked in silence before but this week he had started to tell her things about what he was doing or how a spell worked. It was never a detailed explanation, only a few words or sentences. She absorbed the knowledge and never said anything unless she thought it was necessary. Sometimes he answered and sometimes he didn't.

Working in class with him wasn't so bad anymore and she found herself looking forward to some of their classes. When she thought about it she always felt guilty but then she reassured herself that she didn't have a choice when it came to working with him and learning something for her efforts to stay calm wasn't anything bad. Malfoy always stared at her hatefully but he never tried anything when Tom was around. Hermione had found it disturbing that Tom was still protecting her from his friends but then she figured he probably hadn't told them that she was clueless about the barriers because the dark lord would never admit to being wrong. Malfoy had tried to attack her alone a few times and failed. She had found Malfoy's weakness, he was weak at shielding non-verbal spells and she had to take out his crew before she could defeat him.

In charms she sat two seats away from Tom listening to a middle aged woman with glasses known as Professor Jane Hedger. They were meant to conjure flowers for decorative purposes and the instructions appeared on the board. Hedger demonstrated by conjuring a bunch of yellow chrysanthemums with a golden aura and all the students looked impressed. Hermione glanced sideways at Tom to find him staring at them with a bored expression and she knew he could do way better. The chrysanthemums looked beautiful but they weren't as impressive as Tom's roses. His roses had been sparkling with a glowing aura and the chrysanthemums lacked the sparkle.

"You may choose any kind of flower you like" Hedger said making the chrysanthemums vanish. "Use your imagination to add the effects and keep in mind that you are trying to impress your supposed guests" she finished dryly.

Hermione thought about conjuring roses but dismissed the idea since a lot of people were doing that. Daises or daffodils seemed too ordinary and in the end she settled on pink carnations. Now came the hard part. She wasn't very good when it came to art and she didn't have the faintest idea what to do next. She looked around the room for ideas. Everyone's flowers had an aura of faint light but apart from that the designs were unique. She looked towards Tom to find him floating a bunch of beautiful white orchids. He lightly traced a finger across one of the flowers and seemed deep in thought. He suddenly looked towards her and she quickly turned back to her flowers. What colour aura should she produce for her pink carnations? Hedger had done a golden aura for yellow flowers so what colour matched with pink? She looked at Susan's table to see a bunch of floating violet's with an orange aura. Susan smiled at her and started to add some green glitter to the leaves. Orange kind of matched with pink and she decided to add an orange aura to her carnations. She didn't know what else to do and after a while she added green glitter to her leaves just like Susan.

She looked at her finished work with a feeling of satisfaction. It wasn't great but she thought it was alright. She looked at Tom again and stared at his flowers in amazement. The orchids had a luminous white glow to them and mini icicles hung of the petals. It was like the flowers were studded with diamonds but they looked so natural covered in ice particles. He muttered a spell making crisscross movements with his wand and the dull icicles immediately began to sparkle. He finished by dusting the leaves and stalks with a layer of frost and the whole thing was absolutely breathtaking. The whiteness and the ice on the orchids seemed to remind her of being cold and emotionless but beautiful at the same time. The flowers were a lot like their maker, cold and emotionless but radiating beauty. He floated them high and crossed his arms. He stared at them with a satisfied look and then he turned to look at hers. She felt anxious as he inspected her flowers. She shouldn't really care what he thought but she couldn't help it.

"Granger" he said slowly and she suddenly felt nervous waiting for his opinion. She hoped they were at least acceptable in his eyes. "What kind of rubbish have you produced" his words stung and she felt hurt but she didn't let it show.

"Nothing's wrong with them" she said glaring at him. "Their perfectly fine Riddle"

"They're an eye sore." Well now that she thought about it the bright orange did look terrible with the pink petals.

"You're just saying that because---because" there was no way she was going to admit he was right. "You find fault with everything I do" she blurted out avoiding his eyes.

"The colours clash horribly and the green glitter makes it look like a child's art project" he said sneering at her. "In case you forgot Granger the aim is to impress guests not make them throw up"

"It will impress them" she said glaring at him.

"This is a charms class and you have to create things that will actually charm people" All very well for him to say when his mind was filled with clever ideas and all he had to do was pluck one out.

"Exactly how am I supposed to do that?" she said moodily.

"You should try using your actual brain once in a while"

"What is that supposed to mean?" she said in a high pitched voice.

"Exactly what I said"

"I used my-----"

"No you didn't" he cut in sharply. "I saw you looking at Susan and you stole her idea"

"Well--I---I--"

"There were no instructions in a book to memorise or refer to and since you're so dumb you struggled" he said nastily. She felt like punching him and the worst thing was he was kind of right. She normally would have carried on arguing but she forced herself to let it go. She sat down and stared ahead gloomily. Of course she had a brain and she could use it better than he thought. Just because she wasn't artistic didn't mean she was dumb. Everyone couldn't be a genius like the dark lord and be good at everything. She would show him who had brains when she killed him. "You need to create something that will capture people's hearts and keep them captivated" he suddenly said.

"Easy for you to achieve isn't it Riddle." She said looking at him. "Your always charming and deceiving people so it can't be that hard when it comes to using a bunch of flowers as bait" he looked annoyed and one of his hands clenched into a fist. Okay he was getting angry, time to cool it down a bit. She went back to silently staring at the wall and he ignored her for the rest of the lesson. Tom received an outstanding for his flowers while she received an acceptable. She glared at him and his lips curled into half a smile.

At lunchtime she stabbed her baked potatoes repeatedly while imagining it was Tom.

"Maya what the hell's gotten into you" Susan said placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I hate him" Hermione hissed.

"Who Xav?"

"Why is he so good at everything? He's always so full of himself"

"Xav's good at quidditch but his not that great. You don't need to impress him, I'm sure he'll go out with you"

"I'm not talking about Xavian Potter" she suddenly shouted. Susan backed away in fear and everyone turned to look at her. Tom looked towards the Ravenclaw table with an unreadable expression.

"I'm so sorry Susan" she said quickly.

"It's okay Maya"

"I'm really sorry, I'm just having a bad day" She got up and ran out of the great hall.

"Maya come back and eat something" Susan called out. Hermione ignored her and ran further down the corridor. She spent the entire lunchtime in the library and then she headed for her afternoon classes. It was freezing outside and she held her cloak tightly as she walked towards the green house for Herbology. As usual she sat at the front near Tom. They were given some nasty looking plants and they were supposed to pick off the flowers. The only problem was the plant tried to attack you every time you tried to touch it. You were meant to stroke it behind the ears but she couldn't tell where the ears were, the entire plant looked the same to her. Tom was already picking the flowers of his plant while she attempted to touch hers without losing a finger. She looked at the diagram in the book and it looked easy but when she looked at the plant it wasn't the same. She cautiously attempted to touch a part that looked like the ears and it bit her through the glove. She cried out and pulled her hand away. A chorus of laughter sounded from Malfoy's group and Lestrange clutched his hand with a fake panicked look. She pulled of the glove to find one of her fingers bleeding badly.

"Granger if you had any sense you would know the plant in front of you isn't the one we're supposed to be working on" Tom said looking amused.

"What?" she said looking at her plant closely. Malfoy that son of a bitch had probably switched it. It must have been Riddle's idea since Malfoy hardly attacked her in his presence. "You think its funny, instructing your friend Malfoy to switch my plant" She said angrily. His amused expression quickly dissolved to show anger.

"Malfoy is not my friend" he snapped clenching both his hands into fists. "It is funny Granger since you're stupid enough to fall for it" She glared at him and healed her hand. Malfoy was looking at her expectantly but she wasn't going to attack him in class and get expelled. However they couldn't expel her if it was an accident and she was going to make it look just like that. She carefully picked up the plant pot and walked closer to him. She made it look like she tripped on something and threw the plant pot in Malfoy's direction. Malfoy's screams rang through the room as the plant clung on to him and started to bite through his robes.

"I'm so sorry" Hermione said looking panicked. The professor made the plant freeze and instructed him to go to the hospital wing.

"She did it on purpose" Malfoy yelled clutching his torn blood soaked robes.

"Calm down Mr Malfoy it was an accident" the professor said.

"This isn't over Granger. You're going to pay" Malfoy shouted on his way out.

For the rest of the day she felt much better. She had put Malfoy away without getting in trouble and although Tom wasn't showing it he must be pissed that his friend had been defeated by her.

In the evening she sat in her room writing an essay and eating chocolate chip cookies. An owl with a letter tapped on her window and she let it through. She took the envelope and gave the owl a small chunk of her cookie. It hooted happily and flew away. She tore open the envelope and read the letter. It was from Tom announcing a heads meeting at 8.30 pm and she wondered what the meeting was about. She finished her essay and opened up another pack of chocolate chip cookies. No lunch had made her extra hungry and although the cookies helped she was still starving. At 8.30pm she went down to the common room. Bones and Longbottom were sitting close to each other and Tom was pacing on the other side of the room. Noticing her presence Tom paused and walked into the centre of the room. He waited until she was seated then he sat across her.

"As you all know Halloween is coming up and we have to make preparations for the ball" Tom said addressing the group and he was clearly in charge. Hearing the word Halloween Hermione looked down at her hands unblinking. That meant she had been here for almost 2 months and she hadn't even come up with a plan to kill him yet. "The minister of magic is going to attend and Dippet wants us to impress him" Bones and Longbottom looked excited but Tom looked uncomfortable. "To save you all the trouble I've already selected all the designs and decorations. I suggest we stick to using my designs, all agreed?" Bones and Longbottom instantly agreed. Why were they letting him walk all over them like that? "Good" Tom said pulling out parchments with detailed drawings and annotations. "I have worked everything out. I just need everyone to follow the plan."

"I don't agree" Hermione suddenly said looking up and everyone turned to look at her. Tom looked murderous for a second but his face quickly took on a neutral look.

"Do you have a better idea Granger?" Tom said with an irritated tone.

"I might" she said uncertainly.

"You have no plan of your own and you're saying mine isn't good enough" he said glaring at her. If she had known before she would have planned something. This just wasn't fair.

"All I'm trying to say is we're meant to work together as a group" Hermione said. "All the designs are your ideas, we're not getting a chance to add any of our own" he stared at her unblinking and one of his hands clenched into a fist.

"Bones, Longbottom are you okay with what I'm doing" Tom suddenly said with his eyes still fixed on her.

"Fine with me" Longbottom said.

"I'm with you, don't let her tell you what to do" Bones said looking at her with dislike. Stupid Bones, why couldn't she recognise the real evil person that was controlling them?

"Looks like your outvoted Granger" Tom said still staring at her unblinking. "Everyone meet me in the great hall at 5.15 tomorrow." Tom stood up and handed a copy of his designs to Bones and Longbottom. "Good night everyone" Bones and Longbottom started to walk up to their rooms and feeling defeated she was about to do the same. "Granger" he called out when she was about to climb up the stairs. "Stay behind, we need to talk" his voice sounded very controlled and she bit her lips feeling worried. She turned around and held her breath. Merlin, both of his hands were clenched into fists and his face had a dark expression. She had disagreed with him before and she hadn't thought it would anger him so much. As soon as Bones and Longbottom disappeared into their rooms he drew his wand and pointed it at her. Hermione froze and her heart beat speed up. He was seriously mad at her and now she wished she hadn't said anything at all. "Don't ever undermine my authority like that" he suddenly shouted making her jump. Okay so he was angry because she had disagreed with him in front of all the other heads but maybe sending his right hand man to the hospital wing also had something to do with it.

"Are you sure that's the only reason your angry or is it because I sent your best friend Malfoy to the hospital wing" The words were out of her mouth before she could stop herself and she immediately regretted it. She should have kept quiet and now all her weeks of hard work to keep calm was going to go down the drain. He looked like he was going to explode and his expression turned seriously frightening. She couldn't ever recall seeing him so angry and goose bumps formed on her arms. She was about to draw her wand but he non-verbally summoned it before she even got the chance. Her eyes widened as she watched her wand neatly land on the palm of his left hand.

"Silencio" he said pointing at her throat. Her wand was gone and she couldn't make a sound anymore. Her heart started to beat really fast. This was exactly the kind of thing she wanted to avoid and from the looks of it he was going do something really harmful. She tried to run up to her room and with a wave of his wand he surrounded her with a circle of fire. Hermione let out a soundless scream and huddled in the centre with a frightened expression. He made the fire vanish and grabbed her by the hair. She struggled in his grasp and he threw her onto the floor. Her nose banged into the stony ground and it started to heavily bleed. She tried to get up and he kicked her back down making her silently cry out. She lay still breathing through her mouth and her tears merged with the blood leaking onto the floor. He sat on the floor across her and she slowly looked up. "Malfoy is not my friend" he said moving closer and she crawled back a few inches.

He suddenly raked his hand deep into her hair and painfully pulled her into a sitting position. With his hand still buried in her hair he stared at her unblinking and Hermione didn't dare move in case she made the situation worse. Blood dribbled onto her chin as she fearfully stared back at him. "Malfoy is not my friend" he suddenly repeated in a low voice. "If you ever say he is, you're going to be really sorry Granger" his eyes took on a haunted look and he looked absolutely mad. He roughly tugged on her hair making her wince. "You're going to be really sorry Granger" he repeated. "You're going to be really sorry" he continued to stare at her. "Students respect me because their either afraid of me or they admire the way I look" he said softly and his voice had a hint of sadness to it.

He gently let go of her hair and pointed his wand at her. Her eyes widened in fear and she backed away. "Don't move" he hissed making her freeze. He muttered an incantation and repaired her nose. With her heart drumming away at a maddening speed she blinked several times in surprise. She had been expecting him to do her more harm, not heal her. He conjured a goblet and she stared at the goblet with an unsure expression. "Agumenti" he said filling the goblet with water. What was he going to do now? Mix in poison and force feed it to her. He placed a hand in his pocket and pulled something out. She stared at his closed hand with a panicked look. It might be poison or something worse like veritaserum. He opened his hand to reveal a white hankerchief with a green and silver S embroidered on one side. A hankerchief she thought confused. What was he going to do with that?

He picked up the goblet and drew closer with an uncertain look. He set the goblet down and knelt in front of her. He had never been this close to her before and she saw a glimmer of fear in his eyes like he was afraid of their closeness. She had no idea what he was doing and she was too scared to move back. He dipped the hankerchief into the goblet and pulled it out all wet. He waited until the water drops stopped falling from the material, then he carefully folded it and held it up with a shaky hand. He slowly brought the soaking wet cloth closer to her face and she momentarily stopped breathing. He gently touched her face with it and she let out an inaudible gasp.

She looked into his eyes feeling confused and afraid. His face was completely emotionless and his eyes were unblinking. "If you start disagreeing with me in front of them, it makes me look weak." He said slowly rubbing the blood stains away from her face and she shivered from the cold. He dipped the cloth once more into the goblet and the water turned light red. "I can't lose control Granger" he said pressing the cloth onto her face again and she took in a sharp intake of breath. "Not after seven years of hard work" He dragged the damp cloth over her skin and continued to stare at her with a blank expression. Her heart started to beat at a faster pace and a weird pulling sensation developed in her cheeks. Tom glided it over her nose and onto her left cheek. He started to move the wet cloth in circular motion and her breath quickened against her will.

One of his fingertips accidentally touched her cheek and she felt a shiver run down her spine. He immediately withdrew his hand with a frightened expression. "Evanesco" he said making the goblet vanish. He dried the hankerchief and held it out towards her. She didn't move and stared at it unsure. "Take it" she took it from him with a shaky hand. "Dry your face" he said standing up. She did exactly as he said and patted the cloth over her face. She didn't want to risk making him angry again when she was still wand less. He suddenly bent down to her level again. "Whatever happened tonight, whatever I said. Don't repeat it to anyone." He said commandingly. "Is that understood Granger?" she nodded automatically to say yes.

He removed the silencing spell and stood up abruptly. He threw her wand onto the floor and quietly disappeared into his room. For a while she just sat there. Then she picked up her wand and stood up. Her sides ached from being kicked and she slowly made her way up the stairs. She entered her room and collapsed onto the bed. Judging from his anger she had been expecting him to crucio her today or worse kill her but thank Merlin luck had been on her side. Things could have turned out much worse but a broken nose, hair pulling and a few kicks weren't that bad compared to being crucioed.

She would have to carry on maintaining her cool around Tom and think up a plan fast. She hadn't realised until the Halloween ball had been mentioned that time was running out. She stared at the hankerchief in her hands and she felt uncomfortable as she recalled him washing the blood from her face. He didn't have to do that and his actions had been almost too human but the dark lord didn't feel compassion or mercy, he despised weakness. She stuffed the hankerchief into the pocket of her robes and changed into her night clothes. Crawling under the quilt she stared at the ceiling trying to explain his behaviour and in the end she fell asleep unable to come up with an answer.

**Thank you to everyone that reviewed, I can't believe I've got more than 100 reviews. Someone asked me why Hermione and Tom's wand didn't react when they fought in the common room and I'll just explain why. **

**The brother wands would only react if the spells are cast at the same time and then the spells would also have to run into each other. The fusion of the two spells cast at the same time is what forges the connection between the two casters and causes their wands to react. This didn't happen when Tom and Hermione were fighting each other in the common room. Although Tom and Hermione were throwing spells at each other they weren't cast at the same time so even if their spells collided together it would have no effect. Both the conditions of being cast at the same time and then merging together have to be met for a reaction to occur.**

**Also if you recall from the GOF book, Harry shouted expeliarmus as Voldemort shouted Avada Kedavra so this means the spells were cast at the same time, then the spells also fused together causing the connection between them.**

**Now some of you may be thinking about something similar occurring in deathly hallows. Let me remind you all that it wasn't Voldemort's wand since Voldemort was using Lucius's wand to avoid what happened in GOF. But since Harry is Voldemort's Horcrux the normal rules of magic don't apply and Lucius's wand was destroyed. That's the whole reason Voldemort went searching for the elder wand. **

**Now the sad news, I got my exam results back and I failed two modules. I have to do coursework and resist the exams at the end of this month and in the first week of July. I'm so sad I've just been crying my eyes out. If I don't make it the second time around that's my three years wasted and I won't graduate from uni, not to mention the thousands pounds of loan money I will have to pay back. Being Asian just makes things worse because I'm going to ruin my family honour for being a failure. Anyway, I promise to finish this story if I don't commit suicide. I will update but they will be slower than usual because I'm going to be busy with exam revision. The next 3 or 4 chapters will be up quicker cause I've already written them up and they just need to be improved before I post them. **

**Leave reviews, I need cheering up. **


	17. Dippet’s order

Everything was back to normal again. She never mentioned anything about the common room incident and neither did he. They just carried on like it never happened. After a day of remaining silent he had started to tell her things about spells and potions in class again. At the end of the day they would meet up with Bones and Longbottom and decorate the great hall. Professor Hedger would pop in from time to time and help out. She couldn't stop complimenting Tom and even Hermione found herself impressed with his decorations. Slughorn had come down once and he had been so proud of Tom that he called down the other professors. Dippet had been really pleased with the progress and loved the idea of the main colour of the hall being a glowing green.

They were making a sleeping potion in class today and she allowed him to take control as usual. She noticed he modified a step and added in willow bark as well as the cinnamon stick.

"Think at a molecular level" Tom said stirring the cauldron and she nodded. "What does the cinnamon stick do?" She really had no idea.

"I don't know" Hermione said feeling stupid.

"It reacts with Mugwort and induces dreamless sleep but it also produces another by product which causes poisoning when taken in large doses. Willow bark neutralises the poison but it has to be added at a low temperature. Too much heat will destroy the acid in the willow bark" She absorbed the knowledge and watched on feeling jealous. He became quiet again and they carried on working silently. He probably wouldn't tell her anything else. There was no point pressing him for answers. On rare occasions he answered if he felt like it but most of the time he would insult her intelligence and give her answers that weren't helpful at all. 90% of the time this led to huge arguments and then she had to work very hard to remain calm to prevent the situation from deviating into something violent. The worst thing was his mood afterwards, he would either completely ignore her or make hurtful comments for the rest of the day. They completed the potion in silence and then he stared into the cauldron unmoving.

Since they had finished early she had nothing to do and being bored she found herself staring at him. His skin was flawless and milky white as usual. He was so pale and she found herself wondering if Salazar Slytherin had Vampire ancestors. It was possible, there was no way of knowing for certain who your ancestors were thousands of years ago. No one kept records that far back. His raven black hair was neat as always and sometimes she felt like asking him how he managed to keep it that way. He began to lightly tap his fingers on the table and her focus shifted to them instead. His fingers were longer than normal and thin. Was it easier to grip things with longer fingers? Did it cause problems or was it just like having normal fingers only they were longer to look at. She looked up and her heart missed a beat. He was staring right at her. Crap, he had caught her looking at his fingers. She quickly looked away and busied herself with tidying up to get rid of the uncomfortable feeling. With everything cleared away she sat down while he remained standing. He stirred the potion occasionally and adjusted the heat. How could he make potions like that? He always knew what to do and his knowledge had to come from somewhere. He couldn't have come up with it all himself, could he? She wouldn't put it past him. But he had to have at least read something to provide him with the vital foundations before he expanded it using his own knowledge. He looked like he was in a calm mood and she could try and ask him. She thought about it for a while then she decided to ask him.

"How do you know what to add?" he stared at her for a while and appeared to be thinking of whether he should answer or not.

"I read and use my brain for the rest" he said stirring the potion.

"Which book?" She said eagerly and she hoped he would tell her.

"Wouldn't you like to know" he whispered. He suddenly smirked at her and she glared at him. Selfish idiot, of course he wouldn't tell her easily.

"There is no book is there Riddle, otherwise you would know the name" she said crossing her arms.

"Use your brain and the titles aren't that hard to guess" he said raising an eyebrow.

"I've read all the potion books and I've never come across a book that talks about the things you do" he had to be lying, she would have found the book by now.

"Perhaps you're looking in the wrong section" what other section told you about potion making apart from potions.

"And what section would that be?" she said with a high pitched voice.

"Did you really think I would fall for that Granger?" he said with an amused expression and his lips curled to give her half a smile.

"Worth a try" she said gloomily.

The morning of double potions ended with them both receiving outstanding and they parted their way for lunch. The great hall was still half finished and all the students seemed impressed by the decorations so far.

"Hey Maya" Susan said sitting next to her. "Great work on the hall, what else are you planning to do?"

"Loads left" Hermione said digging into her food hungrily.

"Can you tell me what your gonna put up next?" Susan said eagerly.

"Sure" she said pulling out her copy of the designs. "Erm---next, blood roses are supposed to go up" she said reading from the parchment.

"What are blood roses?" Susan said excitedly.

"I don't know, roses dripping blood all over the floor" she said dramatically waving her hands in the air. The dark lord would obviously come up with something like that.

"Scary but messy" Susan said making a face. "Don't think Dippet will allow it, people might trip on the floor"

"I don't know for sure" she said putting the parchment away. "Riddle came up with it"

"Really, it's probably going to be something breathtaking." Susan said in a high pitched voice. "He never fails to impress"

"He sure knows how to charm people" she grumbled miserably and dug her spoon into her food.

"So which ones your idea?" Susan said looking around the hall.

"Actually there all his" she hissed and lightly punched the table. "I just follow the instructions and put them up"

"Cheer up Maya" Susan said placing a hand on her shoulder. "That's less work for you and more for him" Well now that she thought of it that way it made her feel better. "You see that brown haired boy on the Hufflepuff table" Susan started with a high pitched voice and Hermione mentally groaned. Great, here comes the boy talk.

"Yeah" she said gloomily.

"I know he's shy and everything but for the past month I've caught him staring at me" Susan finished in a whisper. "I'm gonna ask him to the Halloween dance"

"Go for it" Hermione said talking with her mouth full.

"But if he says no then I'm gonna ask another boy I met in divination last week" Susan said pouring herself a glass of apple juice. "Or maybe Xav's nice black haired friend" Susan turned around and waved towards the Gryffindor table. "So who are you going to take?" Susan said in a high pitched voice.

"No one" Hermione said pulling a bowl of apple crumble towards her.

"But your head girl, you have to show up" Susan said in a serious tone.

"I know I have to keep everyone in line all night but if I choose to I don't have to dance with anyone" Hermione said turning to look at Susan. "I read the rules in the handbook"

"That's exactly the same thing Tom did when he was a prefect" Susan said frowning. "I don't think his ever taken part in a dance" Susan said with a pensive look and she glanced at the Slytherin table. Well the dark lord didn't like anyone getting too close to him. If he maintained a distance of two seats in class with her, she doubted he would ever let anyone get close enough to dance with him.

"Can't imagine why anyone would want to go with him" Hermione said rolling her eyes.

"Are you kidding?" Susan said looking at her like she had grown two heads. "He's so gorgeous" Susan said dreamily looking towards the Slytherin table. "I would love to hold him close, run my fingers though his hair and progress down to his---"

"Susan stop" Hermione said sharply. "I don't want to hear it"

"Suit yourself" Susan said rolling her eyes. "So you're really not going with anyone cause I could ask Xav to--"

"No need" She said feeling annoyed.

"Maya you should get out there" Susan said turning towards her. "Believe me with a makeover you can make men fall at your feet" Susan took hold of some of her hair and placed it on her forehead to see how she would look like with a fringe.

"No thank you" Hermione said moving Susan's hand away and rearranging her hair.

"Can I at least give you a makeover?" Susan said sounding hopeful and drank some of her apple juice.

"No, I hate makeovers" She said nodding her head. Susan started to cough loudly and accidentally splattered juice all over herself.

"Maya you got a tissue or something" Susan said wiping her wet face with the back of her hand. Hermione reached into her pocket and pulled out the first thing, a handkerchief. "Thanks" Susan said taking it. She patted her face and neck dry with it. A symbol caught Susan's eyes and she opened up the handkerchief. Susan's eyes widened as she inspected the whole handkerchief and her mouth hung open for a second in disbelief. "Oh my God" Susan suddenly said in a high pitched voice and the other Ravenclaw's looked at them curiously.

"What?" Hermione said alarmed.

"You have his hankerchief" Susan said excitedly jumping up and down. Hermione looked at the huge S on the handkerchief and remembered it was Tom's. Damn it, she thought with a troubled expression. Now Susan was going to jump to wild conclusions. "It's Tom's" Susan said squealing. Some of the Ravenclaw's nearby whispered and stole glances at her. Hermione's cheeks reddened in embarrassment and she shrank in her seat.

"Is not" Hermione said loudly so all the other Ravenclaws could hear. She couldn't see how a huge S proved anything. It could belong to anyone in Slytherin.

"Then why does it have the initials T.R at the back?" Susan said in a taunting voice.

"What initials?" Hermione said weakly. This couldn't be happening. Susan was probably making it up, trying to get her to confess or something.

"These ones, see" Susan said triumphantly holding up the handkerchief and pointing. Hermione froze when she saw very small letters at the back with the initials. They were so small she hadn't realised they were there before.

"Well, I didn't know" Hermione said hurriedly, wishing the earth would just swallow her up. Susan probably wouldn't believe her but she could just say she found it. "Besides I found it" Hermione added in a determined voice.

"The only person in Slytherin with the initials T.R is Tom Riddle and I don't believe that rubbish about you finding it" Susan said taking another look at the handkerchief with an excited expression.

"I'm telling you I found it" Hermione said firmly.

"Something's going on between you two" Susan said accusingly.

"Nothing's going on" She said angrily. That would probably make Susan more convinced that something was going on.

"Come on Maya, I've been watching you two" Susan said with a mischievous smile. "Tom actually talks to you when he usually ignores people" If Susan thought they had sweet conversations. She was seriously mistaken.

"He's always insulting my work and we argue a lot" Hermione said glaring at Susan. "How does that make you think---"

"You're missing the point" Susan said cutting in. "He usually doesn't talk to anyone and he talks to you"

"So" Hermione said taking a bite of her apple crumble.

"So if he thinks your worth talking to--" Susan started in a high pitched voice. "--he might like you in some way" Hermione almost chocked on her food. The dark lord did not like her, he was forced to work with her. Besides if Susan knew about the way he had attacked her then she would definitely change her crazy theory. They clearly hated each other.

"That's ridiculous" Hermione snapped. "He hates me and I hate him. There's nothing more to it" The girl would obviously spread stupid rumours around Hogwarts. It would be better if Susan didn't have any evidence to support her theory and no one would believe her if she couldn't show the handkerchief. Hermione suddenly grabbed the handkerchief out of Susan's hand.

"Hey give it back" Susan shouted.

"I found it so it's mine" she said stuffing it back into her pocket.

"Now I'm convinced there's something's going on" Susan said jumping out of her seat. "Why else would you want it back so badly?" She said with a suspicious tone.

"I don't want you showing it around to support your false stories" Hermione said going back to eating her apple crumble and Susan watched her for a couple of seconds with a frown.

"Accio handkerchief" Susan suddenly said pulling out her wand and the handkerchief flew out of her pocket. Grabbing it Susan ran.

"Susan bring it back" Hermione shouted chasing her down the hall and everyone turned to look at them. "I mean it Susan or you're going to get hurt" Susan continued to run. "Impedimenta" she roared slowing Susan down. "Accio handkerchief" it flew out of Susan's hand.

"Wringardium leviosa" Susan shouted trying to take it back. From a distance Tom Riddle narrowed his eyes at the floating handkerchief.

"Incendio" Hermione shouted making it burst into flames. Now Susan wouldn't be able to prove anything with a piece of burnt cloth.

"This isn't over Maya, I'll find a way to prove it" Susan shouted walking away and dusting her robes.

"There's nothing to prove" Hermione shouted back. Exhausted she sat back at the table and continued with her lunch. She momentarily looked up to find Tom staring at her with his usual expression and she looked away feeling uncomfortable.

At the end of the day she was back again decorating the great hall. The Halloween ball was meant to take place on Friday night and that only gave them today and tomorrow to finish it. Tom gathered everyone in the centre and started to explain how to make blood roses.

"You will need to remember the incantations so I suggest you write them down" Tom said drawing his wand. Bones and Longbottom pulled out their quills but Hermione didn't bother, she knew she would be able to remember. "Rhodonatrum" he said conjuring a bunch of medium sized black roses. "For the next part, two spells are required. Watch my wand movements carefully" he made the bunch of flowers float. "Atamasco" Tom said swishing and flicking his wand and a faint red light appeared around the flowers. "Atrosanguineus" he said circling his wand above the flowers and thick drops of red blood started to fall from the roses but they disappeared before they hit the ground.

"Wow" Bones said. "Their scary"

"Creepy but perfect for Halloween" Longbottom said taking a closer look.

Hermione stared at the dark roses crying tears of blood and they were kind of artistically beautiful in a horrific way. All of a sudden the memory of Ron's blood stained face resurfaced in her mind. She paled and took a step back with a look of horror.

"Granger you okay?" Longbottom said looking concerned.

"I --I'm fine" she said momentarily closing her eyes. "Its just headache" she opened her eyes and forced a smile.

"I want that wall covered with them" Tom said pointing. Everyone walked towards the wall and she followed. Bones and Longbottom grabbed a broomstick and started decorating the top of the wall while Hermione and Tom started decorating the bottom. She pushed all thoughts of Ron to the back of her mind and started to conjure the flowers. "Why the sudden fear of blood when you didn't seem to mind last time" Tom suddenly said attaching a flower.

"I'm not afraid of blood" Hermione said holding up one of the roses. "Do you see me running of screaming?" She held the flower closer trying to prove her point but he didn't say anything. "Exactly Riddle, I'm not afraid" she said glaring at him.

"Now your not but you were a moment ago" he said conjuring another bunch. She had never really been afraid of blood but the memory of Ron's face had brought back the horrors of war.

"I had a headache" she said attaching another flower.

"You looked like you were going to faint" he said looking at her. "I know fear when I see it Granger" Of course the dark lord would know what fear looked like. After all he loved to torture people and watch their terrified expressions.

"You would know wouldn't you" she said nastily. "You love terrorising people" he smiled at her coldly but he didn't answer back. After some time the wall was almost half covered and she had to stand on her tip toes to attach the flowers. Being tall Tom had no problem and he continued to attach the flowers easily. She carefully balanced on her toes and reached up high. Just a little bit higher and she would be able to attach it. She stretched her arm as far as possible and she was almost there.

"What was all that about at lunchtime?" he suddenly asked making her lose concentration and the flower dropped out of her hand. She picked up the flower and glared at him but he just looked back unblinking.

"Nothing happened at lunchtime" she almost snapped and she attempted to attach the flower again.

"I was there Granger" he said accusingly. "I saw you chasing after that girl" Now she was starting to feel uncomfortable.

"She stole my stuff, I was trying to get it back" she whispered stretching her arm further.

"By burning it" he said making blood drops appear on a bunch of roses.

"I'll burn my stuff if I want to" she snapped. "What's it to you" she was really close to attaching it.

"It wasn't yours was it?" he said in a low voice. "I recognised that handkerchief" the flower dropped out of her hand once more and she stamped her feet in frustration.

"Look Riddle if it meant so much to you, you shouldn't have given it to me in the first place." She said angrily. "But if you're that bothered I'll buy you a replacement"

"I don't need your charity Granger" he snapped and one of his hands clenched into a fist. She could tell he was angry and she didn't say anything to make it worse. Maybe she shouldn't have said that. Being an orphan all of his life couldn't have been easy and he had probably thought she was trying to rub in the fact that he didn't have money but she had never meant it like that. She reattempted to attach the flower and she found she couldn't get close enough no matter how hard she tried. She suddenly felt his hand brush past hers and he attached it for her. She almost toppled over in surprise but managed to steady herself in time. "I'll do the rest, you can leave" he said with his back to her. Feeling glad she was about to leave when Dippet stepped into the hall.

"Merlin" Dippet said loudly making everyone freeze and turn around. "This is absolutely magnificent" Now that Hermione looked at the almost finished wall she found herself agreeing that it did look good for a Halloween ball. Dippet called everyone to him. "Excellent work Tom" Dippet said beaming.

"Thank you sir" Tom said putting his wand away.

"And everyone else as well" Dippet added hastily. "Now Tom what else are you planning to do?"

"I was thinking of adding mist to the floor" Tom said looking down with a thoughtful expression. "It would make everyone appear like they were floating" That sounded good but she didn't recall seeing it on the plan. He must have made it up on the spot to further impress Dippet.

"Excellent idea" Dippet said clapping his hands. "Now I have something to tell you all and no matter what your differences, as head boy and head girl I accept you to fully cooperate" Dippet said with a serious tone. "The minister of Magic is coming and I want to show we have house unity within Hogwarts" Oh Merlin, she really didn't want to hear what Dippet was going to say next and even Tom seemed worried. "If head boy and head girl from different houses attended together and opened the dance then it would show house unity very nicely" Dippet finished cheerfully.

Tom tensed and Hermione froze while Bones and Longbottom looked at each other beaming. It didn't take a genius to figure out what would happen next. Bones and Longbottom were dating and they would obviously go together. The only head boy and head girl left were her and Tom. They wouldn't have a choice but to attend the dance together.

"Sir, Cynthia and I are going together" Longbottom suddenly said confirming their worst fears.

"Good to hear William" Dippet said sounding pleased. "Tom I expect you to attend with Maya" Hermione seriously paled and Tom's face went blank but both of his hands were tightly clenched into fists. They both turned and stared at each other unblinking.

"Is there a problem with the arrangement?" Dippet said looking at them with a concerned expression.

"Its fine sir" Tom forced out still staring at her unblinking.

"Maya" Dippet said turning to look at her.

"Fine sir" she whispered unmoving.

"Good, now I wish to burden you all with one more thing" Dippet said pacing. Tom and Hermione suddenly looked at Dippet with alarmed expressions. While Tom's face was blank in the blink of an eye, Hermione's face remained plastered with fear. "Some of you may be excellent dancers while some of you may not be so good" Dippet said clasping his hands together. "Now, I need all of you to dance well in front of the minister, therefore I have asked Jane Hedger to give you all a dancing lesson tomorrow." Dippet paused his pacing and turned towards them. "It will take place in the charms class room at the end of the day and I expect all of you to take part. Is that clear everyone?" Dippet asked. Bones and Longbottom instantly responded but Tom and Hermione stared at Dippet unresponsive.

"Tom, Maya" Dippet said loudly.

"Yes" they both said automatically.

"I hope it won't disrupt the decorating too much." Dippet said looking apologetic. "Do you think you can still manage Tom?"

"It'll be fine sir" Tom said with a controlled voice.

"Good luck everyone and don't let me down" Dippet said cheerfully and walked out the great hall. Bones and Longbottom started to talk excitedly while Tom and Hermione continued to stare at each other horrified.

**Thank you to everyone that reviewed and the words of encouragements really helped. **

**Now, I remember someone saying that Hermione was acting a little out of character and this out of characterness is deliberate. I did this to show how the war had affected her. I mean think about it, the old Hermione would never Crucio a spider or try to kill someone but this Hermione is a bit dark, acts rashly and gets easily angered. Not to mention that she's so hell bent on getting revenge that she has no problem murdering Tom when he hasn't even killed the people she want's revenge for. I didn't think it would be realistic if the war didn't affect her. I think if you were tortured by death eaters and all your friends and family died, it would have a serious affect on you. **

**Please leave reviews and excuse any errors. I didn't have much time to go over it because I'm busy with coursework. **


	18. Letum Sero

Unable to sleep Hermione lay wide awake staring at the ceiling. She couldn't remember how she had managed to get to her room, her mind had sort of been on automatic. She didn't want to dance with Voldemort. She didn't want to hold the hand that had murdered her parents. She didn't want to touch the monster that had made most of her life a living hell. The idea of his hands on her body made her feel disgusted but there was no way out of it and the more she thought about it the sicker she felt.

Hermione forced herself to stop thinking about it and sat up. She suddenly felt angry with herself for letting nearly 2 months go by, she should have at least formed a plan by now. Time was running out and if she couldn't sleep she might as well use the time productively. She lit a candle and sat at her desk. She pulled out a fresh sheet of parchment and dipped her quill in a pot of black ink. She would plan his murder right now and the Halloween ball was the perfect occasion to carry it out. She sat thinking for a while and a fat drop of ink splattered onto the blank sheet. Damn it, why couldn't she think of something? Lots of people would be in the great hall so it had to be something discrete. So that ruled out using wands, knives or physical force and she could make it look like an accident but then there was nothing in the great hall that could actually kill you. Injure maybe but not kill. If only the great hall had a chandelier, then she could have dropped it on him like in those muggle movies. Luring him out and whacking him on the head while everyone was busy partying was a great idea but he would obviously become suspicious if she tried to persuade him to come out. That would do no good since she needed him to remain completely unaware of her intentions. She had to catch him when his guard was down and when he was least expecting it.

How do you kill someone in front of loads of people without being obvious? Unable to come up with anything Hermione looked around her room feeling frustrated. A book on her shelf titled, brewing antidotes to poisons caught her eyes. Poison, that's it. She could use poison to kill him and it was perfect to use in front of crowds. All she had to do was be careful not to be seen and add it to whatever he ate or drank. There would be food and drink at the ball and he had to get hungry or thirsty sometime. Feeling pleased she smiled and wrote down project P. She had to decide what poison to use and then get it from somewhere. That was a problem, where could she get poison from without raising suspicions? She could brew some but then she would have to get a book for that and ingredients. She had no doubt that the restricted section would have something and she could steal the ingredients from Slughorn's office. She decided to sneak down there tonight and she couldn't be bothered to get dressed. Instead she grabbed her cloak and wrapped it around her night gown.

Hermione lit her wand and poked her head out the door. The common room was empty and she tiptoed her way down the stairs. She carefully opened the door and was glad to find Persephone and Hades sleeping peacefully in their portrait. She looked back and forth then she carefully made her way down to the library. She knew Longbottom and Bones were meant to be patrolling and if she got caught she could always lie and say she got the timetables mixed up. Hopefully she wouldn't be seen by anyone. After some time Hermione arrived at the library. She slowly entered and made her way down to the restricted section. She hid around the corner and carefully inspected the area to see if anyone was there. Finding no one she pushed open the gates and started to scan the shelves. Most of the books were huge and dusty with cobwebs while some of them looked like they had been recently read. She had no doubt the dark lord had been reading them, good thing he wasn't here tonight.

It didn't take her long to find books on poisons and she picked the one that she thought would be the best. It was a medium sized black leather bound book titled, how to make the most dangerous poisons. Hermione flipped it open and randomly skipped through the pages. A particular page caught her eye and she paused. It described the making of a poison called Letum Sero and it was perfect. It was colourless and odourless so no one would notice if it was added to their food or drink. It was so potent that only the addition of one drop was necessary to cause death but the more you added the faster they would die. It would be much easier to add one drop without being seen, compared to 5ml that the other poisons required and the best thing about it was its resistance to the Bezor stone. If anyone even managed to shove a Bezor stone down Tom's throat in an attempt to save him, it wouldn't work. If he drank it he was good as dead. The potion was simple to make but the ingredients were worrying. They were vile and dangerous and she wasn't sure if she could get one of them. One of the ingredients, moonflower only grew after the plant was incubated for 50 years under special conditions and she didn't think Hogwarts would have it but it was worth a try.

Tucking the book under her arm Hermione made her way down to Slughorn's office. After watching Slughorn open the door countless times during her Friday night detentions she knew what the password was but he obviously didn't think she knew. She checked under the door for any indication of light and there was none. She muttered the password and crept inside. After some searching she found most of the ingredients in a dusty cupboard at the back. Hermione hastily gathered the ingredient jars and looked hard for the moonflower but no sign. If it grew once every 50 years it must be hard to obtain and very expensive. It was mostly used to make harmful potions so Hogwarts probably wouldn't stock it and she knew Slughorn wasn't the kind of man that was interested in making evil potions but she looked in his private stores anyway. It wasn't there and she punched the table feeling frustrated. She would have to use another poison but this one had been so perfect. Hermione angrily kicked the floor and threw the book onto the table. She was just about to open the book and find another poison when one of her foot went through the floor.

"What the fuck?" she swore grabbing the table to stop herself from falling. She pulled her foot out and bent down to investigate. One of the floorboards had been weak and it has snapped under the force of her kick. She was about to repair it when she noticed a hidden wooden box. Hermione took out the box and pointing her wand at it she cautiously opened it. It was full of small empty jars but one of them contained something. She pulled out the jar and couldn't believe her luck. Inside was one small white moonflower and it looked exactly like the way it was illustrated in the book. To further confirm its identity she read the jar's faded label. Moonflower, Property of Geoffrey Stubbs, 1736, it read. The man was probably dead and she was sure no one knew about the hidden moonflower. She carefully put the jar on the table and replacing the box she repaired the floorboard. She took of her cloak and bundled all the ingredients carefully inside. Hermione peered out the office door and looked back and forth. After a while she stood in front of Persephone and Hades portrait. "Persephone" she whispered. "Persephone" she whispered louder and the woman jumped awake. "Medusa" she said ignoring the woman telling her off and quickly slipped through the door. Thank Merlin the common room was still empty. She quietly made it back to her room and kicked open her bathroom door. She dumped everything on the floor and went back to her room.

Hermione dived under her bed and took out her own cauldron that Dippet had provided for her. In potions they always used Tom's cauldron and there had never been a need to use hers. She grabbed some candle sticks and ran back into the bathroom. She stuck the candles on the bathroom floor and lit them around the cauldron. Hermione opened the book and lighting the cauldron she started to make the poison. Most of the ingredients stung her eyes and some made her cough, as she made the poison she was reminded of the time she had made polyjuice potion in myrtles bathroom. Tears came to her eyes as memories of Harry and Ron ran through her mind. She terribly missed them and she wished she could talk to them again. The mixture started to boil and she wiped away her tears and focused on the last step.

According to the book a whole moonflower had to be added next and in the end the amount of poison obtained would be 2 ml. Hermione wondered how a full cauldron could get reduced to 2 ml by adding one flower. Eager to know she hastily unscrewed the jar lid and dropped in the moonflower. Vapour immediately began rising from the cauldron as most of the liquid started to evaporate and she coughed and waved her hands trying to see what was happening. Soon everything became clear and Hermione stared into the cauldron to find a very small amount of clear liquid inside. Now she knew what happened to most of the liquid, it evaporated rapidly leaving behind a very concentrated poison. She went back into her room and fetched a very small bottle. She carefully tipped the liquid inside the bottle and screwed it shut. She lifted it up and stared at it smiling. The most dangerous poison, Letum Sero was in her hands. Soon she would have her revenge and Voldemort would be no more. The world would be a better place and Harry and Ron would have a chance to live again. Hermione cleared away everything and replaced the cauldron under her bed. She carefully wrapped the small bottle of Letum Sero with a woolly scarf and placed it inside her trunk, then she hid the poisons book deep at the bottom and locked it.

She went back to her desk and tore up the parchment. She liked to write things down when she brain stormed ideas but now she had the plan in her head. Besides it wasn't wise to write down murder plans and store them away, someone could read it. Now it was really late at night and she felt sleepy. She blew out her candles and crept under her quilt feeling a lot happier. Hermione slept peacefully knowing that the dark lord would be dead very soon.

**I know it's short but I'm busy doing coursework. The next chapter will definitely be longer and I've already written half of it. In case anyone was wondering Letum Sero means lethal serum in Latin. Leave reviews. **


	19. Dancing lesson

At breakfast Hermione didn't feel like eating anything. She should have been happy that she had a murder plan but the dancing lesson at the end of the day sucked out all the happiness. She avoided looking at the Slytherin table and continued to stare at her food.

"Maya" Susan's voice sounded close to her ear. "Maya, I'm sorry about yesterday"

"It's okay" Hermione said dully. At least Susan had seen the light and dropped her crazy theory.

"I know you guys had a fight" Susan said hesitantly.

"What?" she said snapping her head up. What new story was Susan going to come up with now?

"It's so obvious" Susan said crossing her arms with a knowing look.

"What's obvious?" she said raising her voice.

"Look at Tom, he hasn't touched his food" Susan said looking towards the Slytherin table and Hermione forced herself to follow Susan's gaze. Tom's arms were crossed and he was staring at his bowl of oats with a blank expression. "He normally stares at you and he hasn't looked towards the Ravenclaw table once" The dark lord was obviously thinking about the same thing and he was probably feeling disgusted that he would have to touch something with filthy blood. "He's just staring at his food and everyone at his table's even noticing" Susan finished in a sad tone. The Slytherin's were sneaking glances at Tom and whispering, while Malfoy and his group looked particularly interested.

"Look I told you before theirs nothing between us" Hermione said feeling annoyed.

"I know you want to keep it a secret but I'm not stupid" Susan said looking offended.

"You don't understand Susan, theirs some ----" She started angrily.

"You haven't eaten either" Susan cut in sharply. "and you've been avoiding looking at the Slytherin table."

"Can be a coincidence" she said loudly, knowing that Susan wouldn't buy it.

"That's rubbish and you know it." Susan said giving her a stern look.

"We didn't fight because there is no we" she tried again raising her voice higher.

"I bet he's upset that you burnt his handkerchief" Susan said raising an eyebrow. "You're probably the first girl his ever given a present to and I can imagine the way he's feeling after you burnt it to smithereens" Susan finished with a dramatic sigh and Hermione looked momentarily shocked. Tom give her a present, Susan was seriously living in dream land. If only Susan knew the real reason he had given it to her and he hadn't actually given it to her, he had sort of left it with her. He probably hadn't wanted it back because he had thought her muggle blood had contaminated the handkerchief.

"I told you, I found it" Hermione said angrily.

"You don't have to pretend, I'm sorry you burnt it because of me" Susan said sounding genuinely sorry. "If theirs anything I can do to fix it" Did Susan just say anything? Maybe she could hold her to her word and get Susan to leave her alone.

"Susan I appreciate your help" She started in a fake kind voice. "But it would be nice if you could just leave me alone, so I can think things through" Susan suddenly smiled widely.

"So it's true then. You and Tom" Susan said in a high pitched voice.

"Susan you're not understanding---" Hermione started in an irritated voice.

"Swear to Merlin, I won't tell anyone" Susan whispered. "I'm sure he'll come around" Susan said patting her on the back and Hermione felt like vomiting. "I'll leave you to your thinking" Susan gave her a smile and rushed off towards the Gryffindor table. Hermione glared daggers into the girl's back and turned back around. So much for keeping her so called secret, Susan was probably spilling it to her girls right now. Nothing Hermione said would ever convince that girl otherwise and feeling frustrated she frowned. A chorus of laughter suddenly sounded from the Slytherin table and she looked up. Malfoy and his group were whispering about something and they laughed again. Tom suddenly drew his wand and made his bowl of oats explode. Milk splattered all over the table and bits of ceramic landed on the floor. Everyone stopped to look towards the Slytherin table and the Slytherin's looked frightened.

"Enough" Tom roared standing up. He glared at Malfoy and his group in particular and Malfoy and his boys looked seriously scared while Crabbe started to shake. Waving his wand he cleared the mess and repaired the bowl. Then he calmly walked away with a neutral expression and the minute he was out the door everyone started to loudly talk about what they had witnessed.

In the arithmacy classroom Hermione sat at her usual place near Tom and avoided looking at him directly. He appeared to be doing the same and had his eyes fixed on the black board. The professor started to explain something about Egyptian runes but she wasn't concentrating. After a long explanation the professor asked a question and everyone was surprised when no hands went up. The professor looked a bit shocked and pointedly stared at Tom.

"Tom" the professor said loudly. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Sorry sir" Tom said sitting up straighter. "Could you please repeat the question?" Tom answered the question perfectly while Hermione stared ahead not processing a word.

For the rest of the day they ignored each other completely and Tom answered questions while Hermione didn't even bother to compete. At the end of the day Hermione walked towards the charms classroom very slowly and she had to force each step forward when she felt like not moving at all. She stared at the classroom door and after awhile she bravely pushed the door open. She entered the room to find Bones and Longbottom chatting away with Professor Jane Hedger.

"Ah, Miss Granger" Professor Hedger said. "As soon as Mr Riddle turns up we can start" Hermione felt relieved to know he hadn't turned up yet. The dark lord was always punctual and it wasn't like him to arrive last. Maybe that meant he wasn't coming but her relief was short lived when the door opened and Tom Riddle walked inside. For the first time today they looked at each other face to face and they both didn't blink. Tom's face was expressionless while Hermione looked like she had just seen a ghost. "Great, everyone's here" Hedger said throwing her hands up in a dramatic way. Hedger put on some classical music and the sweet melody of violin and piano filled the air. "Gather in the centre everyone and start" Bones and Longbottom started to dance away while Hermione and Tom continued to stare at each other. "I guess you two don't have much experience in dancing" Hedger said coming over to them and they both automatically nodded to say no.

The only time she had attended a dance was with Victor Krum back in her fourth year and now it seemed such a long time ago. Even back then she hadn't been very good at it and every time she stepped on Krum's feet he would laugh it away. They hadn't spent much time on the dance floor, it was mostly talking and eating. "Once you get the hang of it you'll see how easy it is" Hedger said encouragingly. "Now, step closer" they didn't move. "There's nothing to be afraid of, now come closer" she repeated in a softer voice. With his hands tightly clenched into fists, Tom slowly stepped forward with a blank expression and Hermione couldn't help but look ill. "Miss Granger hold out you right hand and Mr Riddle hold out your left" Tom slowly held out his hand and Hermione did the same but she couldn't stop hers from slightly shaking. "Now hold hands" She could of sworn Tom had appeared afraid at those words but now his face was expressionless as usual.

Lord Voldemort's hand was floating in front of her once again and this time she couldn't let it go with a brief handshake, she would have to hold onto it. She watched feeling helpless as his long fingers slowly moved closer and she really felt like screaming. He momentarily closed his eyes and forced himself to lightly grasp her hand. She shuddered involuntarily from his soft touch and did her best not to pull her hand back. "Very good" Hedger said smiling. "Now, Mr Riddle place your other hand on her waist" Tom looked mortified while Hermione felt like crying. "Mr Riddle" Hedger said sounding impatient. "Your hand, her waist, now" he looked down at the floor and slowly moved his hand towards her waist. This time his hand was slightly shaking and she bit her lips as she felt his hand barely touch her side. "Miss Granger place your other hand on his shoulder" Tom looked up at once and his expression clearly displayed fear but it dissolved in seconds. She lightly placed a shaky hand on his shoulder and he took in a sharp intake of breath.

His blank expression faltered a couple of times in fright and it didn't last more than the blink of an eye. Anyone else would have thought they had imagined it but after watching him closely for weeks she knew better. He was scared of her touching his shoulder and she couldn't really understand why. The dark lord hated muggles and her having muggle blood was a good enough reason to dislike her touch but not a good enough reason to fear her touch, or maybe mere human contact was scaring him since he preferred to be alone. She wasn't sure what the actual reason was but she guessed it was one of the latter or something similar. She had no desire to get close to Voldermort and just like him she was barely touching him.

Hedger gave them further instructions and she tried to concentrate but it was hard to focus when the dark lord was holding your hand. Hedger pointed a couple of times towards Longbottom and Bones throughout her explanation and Hermione looked towards the dancing couple but she didn't take in a word being said. "Perhaps you should lead Mr Riddle" Hedger said and Tom hesitantly took a step back. She felt him slightly pull and with her mind still fuzzy she followed his lead. "Practice the steps" Hedger said leaving them alone. Still holding her, he distanced himself from her as much as possible and he avoided directly looking at her. He started to slowly lead the dance and Hermione was terrible at dancing as usual. Having the dark lord as her dancing partner was causing her to make more mistakes and she stepped on his feet twice. Apart from creasing his brow he didn't react and for a while everything seemed to be going well until she stepped on his feet again. This time he looked at her and his expression clearly showed controlled anger.

"Do it again Granger and your going to suffer the consequences" he whispered loudly.

"It's your fault for not moving your feet in time" she whispered back and glared at him.

"It's clearly your fault" he pulled her to the left. "Why are you so clumsy? Can't you even control your own body movements?"

"Why can't you control your own movements Riddle" she hissed. "If you move out the way in time-" she stepped to the right. "-then I wouldn't step on you, would I?"

"You're meant to move the other way Granger-" he whispered glaring at her. "-but you keep running into me instead" She accidentally stepped on his feet again and he immediately stopped moving. Tom looked furious and Hermione really wished she hadn't done it but she wasn't going to show him she was afraid. She put on an uncaring expression and stared back at him boldly. "I warned you Granger" he whispered harshly.

"Are you going to pull out your wand and hex me Riddle?" she taunted. "Won't that get you expelled with everyone watching?" she said in a low voice and smiled at him nastily. He stared at her silently with a blank expression and she felt great joy knowing he was powerless to harm her. "I thought not" she continued, just to rub it in a bit more and his lips suddenly curled to give her half a smile.

"You really don't have an imagination Granger" he said in a pleasant tone. Tom resumed dancing and Hermione didn't like his sudden change in mood. Why was he happy all of a sudden when he should be angry? "I won't need a wand" he whispered and he gently stirred her around the room. Hermione was starting to get worried by his words and it showed on her face. "Don't worry Granger" he suddenly said smirking at her. "I won't keep you in suspense for much longer" he stamped on one of her foot with all his strength and she loudly cried out. Tears came to her eyes and she was sure most of her toes were crushed.

"Is everything alright?" Hedger said rushing over to them.

"I accidentally stepped on her" Tom said in an apologetic voice and his expression looked like he was really sorry.

"He did it on purpose" she shouted letting go of Tom.

"Now, Miss Granger" Hedger said sternly. "Mr Riddle would never do such a thing" Hedger appeared like she had personally offended her by accusing Tom. "It was a mistake and it happens to the best of us" Tom was still looking apologetic and she had a huge urge to whack him on the head. Why couldn't Hedger see past Tom's acting skills? "Carry on Miss Granger" Hedger said commandingly and Hermione glared at Tom unmoving. "Miss Granger please continue or I'll have to report you to the headmaster" Hedger said crossing her arms.

Hermione slightly limped and reluctantly stepped forward. Feeling angry she momentarily forgot to touch him lightly and roughly grabbed his hand and shoulder with force. Tom jumped and his whole face went blank. He immediately scrunched his eyes shut tight and she suddenly realised with horror what she had done when she felt his warm flesh pressing hardly against her hands. She instantly let go and stumbled backwards. Tom threw open the door and ran out the room while Hedgers shouted at him to come back. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to report him" Hedger said shaking her head. "He has never disobeyed an order before. I wonder what's wrong with him." Hedger finished in a sad tone and Hermione stared at the empty door frame feeling confused.

Being head boy meant a lot to Tom so why would he jeopardise his position by running off like that? All she had done was hold him more tightly and he couldn't be that disgusted at her having muggle blood. She wondered what the hell made him think he was pureblood when he was half muggle himself and even though he probably didn't like to admit it, deep down he must know. Malfoy had presumed from her surname that she was muggleborn and she hadn't bothered lying to Malfoy because it wouldn't make any difference to a Slytherin unless you were actually pureblood. But Tom had been there when she had lied to Dippet and as far as Tom knew she was also a half-blood. He had probably made himself believe he was pureblood but if he wasn't disgusted at her having muggle blood then why else would he run of like that? It had to be something serious if he would risk his position and before she could think any further Tom suddenly walked in through the door again. "Tom" Hedger said in a pleased voice. "I'm glad I won't have to report you."

"I'm sorry professor" Tom said staring at the floor. "I was feeling sick"

"That's okay Tom, are you still feeling unwell?" Hedger asked and he nodded to say no. "Carry on then but don't hesitate to tell me if you feel ill again"

Still looking at the ground he slowly walked towards her and for a while he just stood in front of her. Then he gently grasped her hand and lightly placed his other hand on her waist. Hermione carefully placed her hand on his shoulder and this time she made sure she kept her touch light. As usual they left a large amount of space between them and they slowly started to dance. He kept looking at the floor and Hermione did the same to avoid stepping on him. She didn't want to get into an argument or have him crush her toes again and she momentarily looked up to find him still staring down with a blank expression. She continued to wonder why he had run out of the room like that and after a while a reasonable explanation came to her. It was clear that the dark lord didn't like being touched and the way she had grabbed him must have made him so angry, that he wouldn't have been able to stop himself from attacking her if he hadn't left the room to calm down.

The song finished and a new faster tune started up but Tom didn't seem to notice. He continued to move to the pace of the old song and Hermione couldn't be bothered to point it out. Her toes were still hurting and she didn't feel like moving at a faster pace. After a while Hedger stopped the music and told Bones and Longbottom to leave after complimenting their dancing. Hedger resumed the music and came over to them. "Don't mind me, carry on" she said smiling widely and they both looked at Hedger with annoyed expressions but carried on wordlessly. Hedger stopped them after a couple of seconds. "The amount of space between you two is ridiculous" Hedger said shaking her head. "Move closer" they both stood still unmoving. "Move closer" she repeated and staring at the floor they both moved a little closer. "That's not enough, more closer" Hermione felt Tom's hands slightly shake as he drew nearer and she held her breath finding his increasing distance seriously uncomfortable.

"Excellent" Hedger said clapping her hands. "This is the distance you should always maintain. Now, look up at each other" Hermione instantly released the breath she was holding and started to cough loudly. "It doesn't look like your getting along very well if you two look at the floor the entire time and we are trying to represent house unity." She said dryly. "You will need to look at each other throughout the entire dance, come on now you two" she said sounding impatient. Hermione slowly looked up to find Tom still staring at the floor. "Mr Riddle" Hedger said sharply. Tom slowly looked up with a blank expression and stared at her unblinking. "Good, now lets try dancing" Hedger put the music back on and they continued to stare at each other. "Dance" Hedger prompted and they slowly started to move.

Hermione couldn't watch her steps anymore and she found it hard to control her movements. Having to look at him just made her lose more focus and his emotionless face was disturbing. The way he wasn't blinking made her feel like she was dancing with a wax doll and the warmth of his hands was the only thing that indicated otherwise. She stepped on his feet a couple of times and this time he didn't react at all. Hedger noticed and made them pause. She instructed Hermione to memorise a certain pattern of steps and made her repeat it over and over again without looking. They started to dance again properly and with her newly memorised steps she found it much easier. She didn't step on his feet again and they paused when the track ended. "Very good" Hedger said clapping. "Dance to the next one and if your good, I'll let you go" Hedger waved her wand and a new music track started up.

They started to dance again and this time Hermione found it incredibly easy. The steps were now etched in her mind and she didn't have to think about which way to move anymore. She looked into his black eyes and found they had a hint of brown to them in bright light. He suddenly blinked and she looked away. After a short while the music ended. They both looked at Hedger and anxiously awaited her decision. "Very good" Hedger said looking pleased. "You may leave ---" they instantly let go of each other and rushed towards the door. "--and good luck tomorrow" She finished in a tone that said she was offended by their eagerness to leave. Tom was already out the door and Hermione ran out soon after.

They finished decorating the great hall at night and she had to admit it looked impressive. While Bones and Longbottom had chatted away the whole time, Hermione and Tom had worked in silence. They had both avoided looking at each other and kept more distance between themselves than usual. Hermione had kept her mind focused on decorating and tried not to dwell on the memories of their dancing lesson.

Later in the night she dropped onto her bed feeling exhausted and she felt like falling asleep right there and then. She forced herself to get up and change. She took of her socks and she wasn't surprised to find one of her feet blood stained. Tom had stamped on it very hard and it was to be expected. She cleaned up her feet and threw on her nightgown. Then she blew out the candles and crept into bed. Hermione closed her eyes and immediately fell asleep.

**I'm not really an expert in ballroom dancing and I've tried my best, so if anything seems wrong please overlook it. Now, don't forget to review. **


	20. What should I go as?

Hermione woke earlier than usual and sat up in bed. She drew her knees up and stared at the wall ahead. Today was the day of the Halloween dance but the dance was the least of her worries. She had to kill Tom today and that was occupying her thoughts the most. She slowly got out of bed and unlocked her trunk. She took out the small bottle of deadly poison and stared at it. She thought about her parents and friends and a tear trickled down her cheek. She put the bottle away and went back to bed but she couldn't sleep. There was a long time left till breakfast and she lay awake with her eyes closed.

She sat at the breakfast table and just like yesterday she stared at her food. There was too much on her mind and she couldn't be bothered with small things like eating. She forced herself to look towards the Slytherin table and found Tom stirring his spoon with a blank expression. Once in a while he lifted the spoon up, stared at it and then put it back down. He wasn't actually eating anything, he was just playing with his food and Hermione figured today's Halloween dance was probably plaguing his mind.

"Hey Maya" Susan's annoying voice sounded and she quickly looked away. "Is he still mad at you?" Susan whispered.

"He was never angry with me in the first place" she said feeling irritated. Why couldn't this annoying girl leave her alone? As if she didn't have enough to deal with.

"Whatever you say" Susan said rolling her eyes. "Look I think--"

"Can you be quiet" Hermione snapped. "I have a headache"

"If that's your way of getting rid of me, it's not going to work." Susan said grinning at her and Hermione seriously felt like crucioing her.

"Look theirs nothing between us" she said glaring at Susan. "He's not eating because he doesn't want to eat."

"Deny it all you want but I know theirs something going on" Susan said in a sing song voice.

"I'm not talking to you" she snapped and turned the other way.

"Fine, I won't mention your secret lover" Hermione's eyes widened and she immediately turned back around.

"My what?" she said weakly.

"I guess the term lover might be weird if you guys haven't got to the touchy feely stage yet." Susan said winking at her and Hermione abruptly stood up. She had to get out of here, she couldn't listen to this anymore. "I'm sorry Maya, don't leave" Susan said grabbing her hand. "I won't talk about him, please don't leave because of me" Susan's voice sounded pleading and her anger vanished. She reluctantly sat down and there was a minute of peaceful silence until Susan started talking again. "You know that boy I met in divination" Susan said excitedly.

"Yeah" Hermione said in a bored tone.

"I'm going with him"

"I thought you were really into Xavian's friend" she said picking up a toast.

"Nah, not my type" Susan said waving her hand dismissively. "Anyway, I'm going as Cleopatra" Hermione dropped the toast with a troubled expression. Merlin, why hadn't she realised before? It was a Halloween ball and that meant she had to dress up as something.

"What am I going to do?" Hermione burst out and placed her head in her hands. "Why didn't I realise before, why?"

"What's wrong?" Susan said with a concerned look.

"I don't know what to dress up as and it's probably too late to even get a proper costume" she said in a panicked voice.

"I thought you weren't going with anyone" Susan said with a confused look.

"I am" Hermione said punching the table in frustration

"With who?" Susan said in a high pitched voice.

"With Riddle" she said without thinking.

"I knew it" Susan said pointing her finger and she jumped up and down in her seat excitedly.

"No, it's not what you think" Hermione said loudly. "Dippet's forcing us"

"Why would he do that?" Susan said with a disbelieving look. "Honestly that's one of the lamest excuses I've ever he---"

"The minister of magic's coming and he wants us to show house unity" Hermione cut in angrily.

"The minister of magic's coming" Susan said excitedly.

"Yeah" Hermione said gloomily and Susan sat quiet for a minute absorbing the information.

"Oh my God" Susan suddenly said making Hermione jump. "No one's ever seen Tom dance and your going with him." Susan said waving her hands. "Do you realise how many girls would die to be in your place." Susan whispered excitedly.

"Those girls are all idiots" Hermione grumbled.

"What's wrong with you?" Susan said frowning at her. "How can you not like Tom Riddle, he's so --so" Susan suddenly smiled. "Hang on, of course you like him. You just don't want anyone to know"

"I don't like him" Hermione snapped. How many times did she have to tell this girl?

"Sure you don't" Susan said with a mischievous smile. "Now about your costume"

"The costume" Hermione had momentarily forgotten about it. "Oh my God, what am I going to do?" Hermione buried her face in her hands once more. With the dancing lesson and the murder planning it had slipped her mind. Now she had no idea what to wear.

"Hey, I'm gonna take care of everything" Susan said gently patting her on the back.

"You are?" Hermione said looking up.

"Sure, what are friends for?" Hermione smiled. At least enduring this girl was going to pay of in some way. "But on one condition" her smile fell. She should have known Susan wouldn't do something without a price.

"What kind of condition?" Hermione said suspiciously.

"Nothing to hard" Susan said smiling. "You have to let me give you a proper makeover and you can't interfere, even if you don't like it"

"I don't know" She said creasing her brows.

"Fine then" Susan said crossing her arms. "Find someone else to help you" She really had no one else to turn to and a makeover couldn't be that bad. It would just be like the time Ginny and Parvati had helped her in her fourth year. But she didn't trust what Susan would make her wear and she didn't want to come out dressed like some exposed whore.

"All right I'll do it" Hermione said. "But you can't make me wear anything with my legs showing"

"What's wrong with a short dress?" Susan said raising an eyebrow.

"I don't like them"

"Fine but you have to promise you won't interfere with anything else" As long as she was decently covered she wasn't too fussed about hairstyle or make-up.

"Done" Hermione said feeling glad that she had solved the problem.

"Meet me at the Ravenclaw dorm at the end of the day"

"I'll be a little late, I have to see Slughorn"

"This is going to be so great" Susan said in a high pitched voice. "All the girls are going to be so excited" Susan suddenly hugged Hermione. "I love you Maya, you are going to look fabulous" she said releasing her. "I have to tell the others" she said standing up. "See you later" Susan called out running towards the Gryffindor table.

All the classes with Tom went by in a blur. Like yesterday they had both completely ignored each other and she had let Tom answer all the questions. Soon the day was over and all the students rushed of to get ready for the dance. She knocked on Slughorn's office door and after a while the door opened.

"O ho, Miss Granger" Slughorn said cheerfully. "What can I do for you?"

"Sir about the detention I----"

"Detention cancelled" he said clapping his hands. "Enjoy yourself tonight"

"Thank you sir" Hermione said beaming.

"A birdie told me you're going with Tom" he whispered smiling widely. No doubt Dippet had told him and now he was probably thinking theirs something between them. Why did everyone fail to understand the forced to go part? "Good luck" Slughorn winked at her and closed the door. Yes, she was certainly going to need the good luck with what she was planning to do.

She walked into the Ravenclaw dorm. Susan and a bunch of girls were chatting excitedly and they immediately stopped noticing her presence.

"Maya" Susan said running up to her. "There all gonna help" she pointed towards her girls. "You remember Morgana, Haley, Stacey and Kirsten" Hermione just nodded when she really didn't remember any of their names. "Great, just come into the centre" she gestured and Hermione walked forward with five pairs of eyes watching her. "We've decided your going to go as--" She paused for a couple of seconds. "A fairy" Susan burst out dramatically.

"A fairy" Hermione repeated with an unsure expression.

"Worried that it's not dark enough to turn on your Slytherin guy" Morgana said and all the other girls laughed. Hermione glared at her and turned red with anger.

"You have nothing to worry about Maya" Susan said. "I promise he's going to love it"

"I don't care if he likes it or not" Hermione snapped and stamped her feet in anger.

"So you're okay with the fairy" Susan said placing her hands on hips. "Cause if his into you know what" Susan said raising an eyebrow. "I could always change it to a female demon instead"

"Just dress me as the bloody fairy" Hermione shouted. "It doesn't matter if he likes me or not because we're not together"

"I see what you mean" Kirsten said looking at Susan. "She doesn't---"

"Kirsten" Susan said sharply. "Ignore them Maya, fairy it is" Susan said excitedly.

"Where's the costume?" Hermione said looking around but she didn't come across anything.

"I'm not going to send you out looking like some fairy from a child's book" Susan said rolling her eyes.

"Then what" Hermione said worriedly.

"To show you're a fairy all you need is a pair of wings at the back" Susan said pointing behind her. "The rest, you can dress as you want"

"Sounds good" Hermione said looking around the room again. "So where's this dress?"

"You are going to love it" Susan said jumping up and down. "Haley, bring it out" Haley brought out the dress and from a distance Hermione could make out a bundle of dark red satin. "I'm sure this will fit you" Susan said handing her the dress "Go put it on" She went behind the room divider and stripped down to her underclothes. She could hear whispered conversations and couple of times she heard Tom's name being mentioned. They shouldn't even bother with whispering, she thought angrily. She held up the dress and she didn't like what she saw but maybe it wouldn't be so bad when she put it on. Wearing the dress she stepped out and all the girls immediately stopped talking. She quickly walked over to the full length mirror and hated what she saw.

"Susan, what kind of a dress is this?" Hermione said still staring at her reflection.

"It's perfect" Morgana said walking closer.

"What a figure" Stacey said whistling. "I would kill to look like that.

"Told you she would look hot with the right treatment" Susan said excitedly.

"I'm not wearing it" Hermione said nodding her head.

"Yes you are" Susan said putting her hands on hip. "Look, its long and flowing just like you wanted and you promised what I said went next"

"I know its long but the neckline of this dress is so low, it's ridiculous" Hermione said pointing at her chest. "The sleeves are also too short" she said placing her hands on her shoulder. "I want longer sleeves and higher neck"

"Didn't know Tom was into Grandma's" Morgana said and everyone laughed while Susan tried her best not to.

"Maya, it's just a little cleavage" Susan said standing in front of her. "Such a small display of flesh and you're going on like I'm sending you naked out there"

"I don't like it" Hermione said crossing her arms.

"Tough luck" Susan said sternly. "You're wearing it" Hermione glared at her angrily. On her own she wouldn't be able to figure out anything and in the end she gave in.

They spent the next hour using various potions to straighten her hair and just when Hermione thought the torture was over, they said they were going to start making her hair slightly wavy. Of course, how could she have forgotten? In her time straight hair had been the thing but in the 1940's wavy hair was the big thing. Her hair was naturally curly so they had to straighten it first and then make it wavy. She had wanted to tie it up but Susan insisted on leaving it out, claiming that it made her look sexier. They then spent another hour putting heaps of makeup on her and the thing that scared her most was the eyelash curler. It looked like a torture device and it felt like it was yanking your lashes out instead of curling them. Then they put small black crystal earrings on her ears and made her wear a small matching pendant. The finishing touch was making her put on red lipstick and she had been totally against it. She had wanted to put on natural colour lip-gloss but in this time red lipstick was in and Susan wasn't going to have it any other way. At the end she could barely recognise herself, she looked like one those nostalgic movie stars of the 1940's and 50s.

"Perfect" Susan exclaimed.

"Merlin, she does look good" Morgana said and all the other girls seemed to agree.

"Alright, let's add the wings" Susan said excitedly. She went under the bed and brought out a pair of dusty white wings. "Scrougify" Susan said making all the dust vanish. "I made these in the weekend when I was planning to go as a fairy" Susan said lifting her hair. She muttered a spell and easily attached the wings. "Don't worry about them coming off, I stuck them on with a sealing charm"

"Wow" Kirsten said. "Now she looks great"

"Tonight you are so going to murder Tom" Morgana said jokingly and Hermione almost dropped to the floor in panic. It's okay, it's okay, she repeated in her mind and she grabbed a chair for support. They didn't mean actual murder, it was probably some kind of a weird 1940s sexual joke that she was failing to understand or maybe Susan's girls were just nuts.

"I agree" Kirsten said. "He's going to die when he see's her like this" Hermione managed to calm herself down but she still held onto the chair. No one knew anything, they couldn't know and hopefully everything would go as planned.

"Or more like drag her into a broom closet and shove her up against a wall" Susan started in a low voice. "Hitch up her dress and--"

"Susan please" Hermione squeaked as a disturbing visual entered her mind.

"That was nothing" Haley said rolling her eyes. "Susan can go into so much detail you'll get wet"

"You know you like it when I talk dirty" Susan said in a seductive voice and everyone laughed except Hermione.

"What's the matter?" Morgana said raising an eyebrow. "You've already been in a broom closet together" Hermione immediately released the chair and glared at them.

"We were checking out a haunted closet" Hermione said angrily. "Nothing else happened"

"Just don't believe him tonight if he tells you his bedroom's haunted" Stacey said winking and everyone laughed again. Hermione really felt like running out the room and her hand itched to Crucio them all.

She stuck around to help everyone get ready and for nearly an hour she was busy handing various cosmetics, zipping up and doing buttons at the back. In the end she had to admit all the girls looked stunning, especially Susan in her gold coloured Egyptian dress.

"There's like an hour left before we have to go down" Susan said sitting on her bed. "Hey Maya" Susan suddenly said and Hermione closed her eyes recognising the excitement in her voice. "What's Tom coming as?"

"I don't know" Hermione said wondering the same thing. Now that she thought about it, she was kind of curious.

"I can't wait to see him wear something that's not the school uniform" Morgana said dreamily.

"Me too, wonder how his gonna look" Susan said lying flat on her back. Hermione had never seen him wear anything other the school uniform and she couldn't help but think the same thing. A small bottle of perfume caught her eyes and she suddenly remembered about her murder plan. What the hell was she doing? She shouldn't be wasting time thinking about Tom Riddle's clothes, she was meant to figure out how to discreetly carry the poison.

"Thanks for everything" Hermione said hurriedly. "I have to go now"

"Stay a little longer Maya" Susan said sitting up.

"I've got a few things to sort out" Hermione said walking towards the door.

"We all know who she's really going to see" Morgana said. Hermione ran out the room fast and sounds of laughter followed as she shut the door. She hurriedly walked down the corridors and after a while she arrived at the heads quarters.

"Medusa" she said standing in front of the portrait.

"Sweet Merlin" Persephone said looking at her with wide eyes. "Hades come see this"

"Is that the same girl?" Hades said appearing at the front.

"Can you let me in?" Hermione said feeling exposed in the dress and the door sprang open. She was glad to find the common room empty and she quickly ran into her room. She unlocked her trunk and took out the small bottle of Letum Sero. The most deadly poison was in her hands and with it she would end the dark lord. Now, all she had to do was work out a way to secretly carry the poison. She thought and thought but came up with nothing. Soon there was 15 minutes left till the start of the dance and she was starting to get panicky.

Feeling frustrated she violently pulled open her dressing table's drawer and a ring toppled out. She snatched up the large black crystal ring and dumped it back inside. She was about to shut the drawer when something caught her eyes and she picked up the ring to closely inspect it. The crystal had moved away to reveal a hidden compartment and she clicked it shut, then she opened it again with another click. She had never known this about the ring and the secret compartment was a complete surprise. Hermione smiled as she found the perfect solution to her problem and luckily the ring also matched with her jewellery. An unmatched item would have drawn some kind of attention and it looked like luck was on her side tonight. She put on the ring and it was a perfect fit. Judging from the size, she was sure she could fit in 2ml and she carefully tipped all the poison inside the compartment. She clicked the ring shut and threw away the empty bottle.

Hermione looked into her full length mirror and smiled at her reflection. Everything was going perfectly. She was dressed and the poison was safely loaded inside the ring. All she had to do was put up with one dance, add the poison to his food or drink and then watch him die with satisfaction. Hermione took out her red lipstick and slowly refreshed the colour. She pressed her lips together and smiled once again. Tonight she would have her revenge.

**It was interesting to read the reviews in response to my last chapter and thank you to everyone that reviewed. Yeah, I know the ring idea isn't original and I'm sure I stole it from a Disney movie I saw years back. **


	21. The Halloween dance

Hermione stood holding her door knob and after taking a couple of deep breaths she stepped outside her room. She slowly walked down the stairs and paused halfway as she noticed someone standing near the fireplace. The figure had its back to her and was wearing green dress robes. The captivating thing about the robes was it had a green luminous glow to it and she suddenly noticed an armband of oak leaves. As she got closer she could see that the robes were worn out and if you looked carefully the colour was faded in places. The black hair, the height and robes that were second hand but without a crease immediately gave away who he was. Hermione knew it was Tom and all of a sudden she felt nervous as she waited for him to turn around.

A couple of seconds later he suddenly turned and she held her breath. His hair was well kept as usual and his pale face was flawless but he looked different tonight. She was used to seeing him in school uniform and the robes made him appear less of a boy and more of a man. She would never have thought it possible but he actually looked more handsome. He ran his eyes over her and Hermione released her breath. He continued to stare at her with a blank expression and the feeling of being exposed came rushing back. Tom was looking at the top part of her body and she became very conscious of the fact that her dress was low cut, but then she realised he wasn't staring at her chest as his gaze was higher up. His blank expression suddenly dissolved and he looked angry. He slowly clenched his hands into fists and Hermione's heart beat speed up in fear. Why was he mad at her all of a sudden?

"Granger" Tom hissed making her hair stand. "What rubbish have you stuck onto your back?" he said angrily. Her fear momentarily vanished and anger boiled up inside her. What was she expecting? The dark lord to compliment her on how good she looked, she really felt like saying his robes were rubbish but she didn't want to start a fight.

"In case you can't tell Riddle" she said in a forced calm voice. "They're wings" She had hoped his anger would lessen if she didn't raise her voice but he appeared even more furious.

"You're calling those things made of paper, wings" he said in a low threatening voice. "Are trying to be a muggle dressing up for Halloween?" he suddenly shouted making her jump.

"I'm a fairy" she snapped losing control. "What are you meant to be? A bloody hermit living in the woods" She immediately regretted saying that and she was expecting him to hit her any second now. To her surprise he didn't move and he glared at her.

"Actually Granger" he started in a calm voice that she found even scarier than his shouting voice. "I'm a forest God" he suddenly took a step closer and her heart jumped violently. "Are you a witch Granger?" he continued in his calm voice and her heart started to thud away at a faster speed. What did he mean by that question? Why was he asking her that? He suddenly looked murderous and he took a couple of more steps towards her.

"Of cour-course, I'm a-a-wit--witch" she stuttered feeling scared by his sudden closeness. He suddenly grabbed her wings and Hermione screamed.

"If you're a witch" he shouted shaking her violently. "Why have you stuck on paper wings like a common muggle?" He roughly pulled on her wings and pushed her backwards. Her head banged into a wall and Hermione cried out as a searing pain ran through her skull. "I hate muggles" he shouted tearing of her wings and a loud ripping noise echoed through the room.

She stared at the torn wings with wide eyes and remained frozen in fear. He turned and threw the paper wings into the fireplace. A crackling sound filled the air and they turned into black shrivelled mass within seconds. Hermione suddenly understood what had angered him. The stiff paper wings had clearly reminded him of muggles and she hadn't known his hatred for muggles was so deep. Susan was magically less skilled and she could have made the wings magically flutter or glow but she hadn't bothered. If she had known how badly Tom would react then she would have done something. Tom suddenly turned and pointed his wand at her. She paled and mentally cursed herself for not drawing her wand earlier. There was no point trying now and he would obviously disarm her before she could touch it.

"Turn around" he said commandingly and her pulse quickened dramatically. Merlin knew what he was planning to do and she felt too scared to obey. "Turn around now" he shouted making her jump. "Or do I have to make you?" She forced herself to turned around and strong waves of fear ran through her. She heard his footsteps draw closer and her breathing deepened. He pressed his wand against the side of her neck and she jumped. Using his wand he started to gently move her hair away and her knees started to slightly shake. He piled her long hair to one side and exposed her back. He lightly traced her backbone with the tip of his wand and chills went down her spine.

"What are you doing?" she whispered feeling absolutely terrified. He didn't answer and made slashing movements across her back. She suddenly felt heat and she whimpered in fear. She was expecting the heat to soon burn her but the temperature didn't increase. He continued to make slashing movements and after a while it felt like someone was running warm water across her back. Tom started to mutter incantations with a high pitched voice and goose bumps formed on her arms. Hermione suddenly felt pulling sensations on her shoulder blades and a feeling of dread pooled in her stomach. Then she couldn't feel anything at all and that frightened her even more.

"Those are wings Granger" Tom's voice sounded and Hermione jumped noticing him standing in front of her. "Now you look more like a fairy and less like a muggle" he said softly and took a step back. Hermione immediately turned her head sideways and her mouth hung open in disbelief. She could make out huge black feathered wings attached to her back and they looked so real. This was serious complex magic that she had never come across and she couldn't help but be impressed. She had been expecting him to do something horrible to her but he had given her a new set of realistic wings instead. "Move Granger" Tom said holding the door open for her. "We're getting late" She was glad to come out unharmed and she stepped outside without a word. She fixed her hair as Tom shut the door and Persephone stared at her with a shocked expression. She rubbed the area of her head that Tom had banged into a wall and muttered a numbing spell. She suddenly noticed his eyes were fixed on her head and an uneasy feeling developed inside her.

"Good gracious, your wings have changed" Persephone exclaimed leaning closer. "Hades come see this" Hermione and Tom started to walk away and ignored Persephone and Hades excited chatter.

The entrance to the great hall was crammed with people dressed in impressive clothes. She found the fashion difference fascinating and it was like she had stepped into an old movie. There wasn't a single girl present that didn't have red lipstick and most of them had wavy hair or curls. A lot of couples were holding hands and getting cosy while they waited for the doors to open up. Hermione walked by Tom's side and felt uncomfortable as they neared the crowd. He was staring ahead with an expressionless face and she tried to do the same. With each step she was getting more nervous and worried. Killing him was dominating her mind and the dance hardly mattered anymore. Suddenly the crowd became quiet and started to stare at them. Excited whispers filled the air and a lot of people had expressions of disbelief. A large number of girls were staring at Tom as if he was God himself that had appeared on earth and she got a couple of hateful glances from jealous girls but the boys mostly looked annoyed. A smirking Abraxas Malfoy holding a blonde haired girls hand started to walk towards them. Malfoy paused halfway and whispered something to the girl. He released her hand and the girl whispered something back with a fearful expression. Malfoy gave her a reassuring glance and continued to walk towards them. Soon Malfoy was closely followed by his group of boys and Tom's expression darkened as he noticed them approaching.

"Well, well what do we have here?" Malfoy drawled out blocking their pathway.

"Move Malfoy" Tom said threateningly but instead of moving he just sneered at them and she was surprised by Malfoy's unafraid behaviour.

"If it isn't the rag prince and the mudblood princess" Malfoy said lowering his voice and Hermione's eyes slightly widened in shock. Did Malfoy have a death wish or something? Why was he talking to Tom like that? Tom's expression turned murderous and he grabbed Malfoy by the collar. There were gasps and shouts from the crowd and all eyes turned towards them. "Careful Riddle" Malfoy said with a glint of fear in his eyes. "Remember you're head boy" Malfoy suddenly smiled. "You wouldn't want to do anything too drastic in front of everyone" Tom looked furious and Hermione knew he was only controlling himself to avoid losing his position or worse getting expelled. She felt like ripping Malfoy to shreds but Tom's advice was firmly in her mind and crossing her arms she glared at Malfoy. Tom roughly pushed Malfoy backwards and released his collar. Malfoy quickly straightened himself up and appeared completely unaffected. A few of his boys laughed and patted Malfoy on the back. "I never thought you were the type that saves damsels in distress" Malfoy whispered looking her up and down. "But now it all makes sense" He was obviously referring to the time Tom had intervened when Malfoy had attacked her.

"Hold your tongue Malfoy or I'll cut it out" Tom snapped and threateningly took a step forward.

"Be my guest Riddle" Malfoy said sneering at him and Tom tightly clenched his hands into fists.

"This isn't over" Tom hissed glaring at Malfoy and his group. "You're all going to pay" Tom roughly pushed them out the way and walked on shaking with rage. Hermione quickly followed and he was moving so fast that she had to run to keep up. Tom threw open the doors of the great hall and then slammed them shut. She entered shortly afterwards and the splendidly decorated hall was empty expect the two of them. They were meant to meet with Longbottom and Bones and it looked like they had arrived too early. He walked towards the other end of the hall and the misty floor made it appear like he was floating. He added more mist to a corner that had less covering and she noticed one of his hands was still clenched into a fist.

She was sure he was secretly friends with Malfoy and his group but whatever happened a few minutes ago couldn't have been acting. If it had been acting then Tom's hand wouldn't be clenched into a fist and she knew he only did that when he got angry. He obviously hadn't told Malfoy why he had wanted to keep her safe and seeing her attending the dance with him must have given Malfoy the impression that she was more important to their leader than the group. Their disrespect was probably just rebellion but she suddenly wondered about something else. What if Tom wasn't really friends with them? What if they really hated each other? Tom did react violently whenever she said they were friends but Dumbledore had always insisted he had formed his death eater circle at school and that meant he had to be their leader in secret. Hermione started to get a headache as she thought more and more about it. In the end she decided it didn't matter if he was friends with Malfoy or not because either way Tom was still the dark lord and she was going to kill him.

Hermione checked the refreshments and everything was fine. After a while she noticed Tom's hands were relaxed and she knew he had calmed down. Bones and Longbottom suddenly walked in through doors.

"Riddle, anything need fixing?" Longbottom asked walking towards them.

"Everything's perfect Longbottom" Tom said staring at the blood roses. "Just perfect"

The great hall doors opened once again and Dippet entered followed by Dumbledore and Slughorn.

"Tom my boy" Slughorn said looking overjoyed. "This is absolutely magnificent" Slughorn turned in circles as he gazed up at the decorations and Dippet stared at the blood roses transfixed. Dumbledore quickly swept his eyes around the hall but he didn't look impressed.

"Wonderful indeed" Dippet said tearing his eyes away from the blood roses.

"It is nice" Dumbledore said slowly.

"Just nice Albus" Slughorn said looking offended. "What do you have against the boy?"

"Nothing Horace" Dumbledore said looking at Tom gravely and Tom stared back at him distastefully.

"Good work everyone" Dippet said beaming at them. "The minister should be arriving in 15 minutes" he said glancing at his watch. "Make sure everyone gets inside in time" he said turning to leave. "Oh and don't forget about the opening dance" Dippet said pausing at the door. "I'm sure you all won't let me down" he smiled at them widely and then exited. Longbottom and Bones looked at each other excitedly while Tom stared ahead unblinking and Hermione couldn't help but look ill.

"Is something bothering you Miss Granger?" Dumbledore suddenly asked and Hermione immediately looked at the floor. Dumbledore was the one person she couldn't completely block with her occulumency and the less eye contact the better.

"No sir" She said pretending to smooth out a wrinkle on her dress.

"Come on Albus" Slughorn said rolling his eyes. "The girls just nervous about opening the dance" She slowly walked towards the other end of the hall and busied herself on double checking the decorations. Worry pooled in her stomach and she took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself down. No one knew anything and everything was going to be fine, she kept on repeating it in her head like a mantra. After a while the other professors and prefects arrived. She noticed Tom talking to the prefects and he was probably explaining their duties to them. Longbottom and Bones were quietly chatting in a corner and she was glad to find Dumbledore had left the hall.

Soon the doors were opened up to allow students through and excited voices filled the air as they saw the finished hall for the first time. Within minutes the great hall became very crowded and noisy.

"Hey Maya" someone said tugging on her arm and she turned to find it was Xavian Potter. He was dressed in black and she suddenly noticed he was carrying a scythe.

"Let me guess" Hermione said pointing at the scythe. "You're the grim reaper"

"Yeah" he said grinning at her. "Let me try guess what you are" he stared at her for a couple of seconds. "An angel of death" Xavian said in a deep dramatic voice. "Or maybe vengeance" She felt faint hearing him say the words death and vengeance and it gave her the feeling that someone had caught her but he couldn't possibly know what she was trying to do.

"I'm a fairy" she said quickly. "A fairy" she repeated just to make herself feel better.

"With those shiny black wings, you have to be some evil fairy" Xavian said pointing at her wings. "I can't believe Susie was right" he said smiling at her. "You look---you look absolutely gorgeous" he winked at her and she suddenly felt uneasy. "Those wings, their fabulous." He said stepping closer. "Susie has seriously got to show me how to do that"

"Yeah about the wings" she said slowly. "Their not Susan's"

"Their not" he said creasing his brows. "So how did you---"

"Someone made them for me" Hermione said uncomfortably.

"Who?"

"Someone I know" she said looking at the floor.

"Stop being so mysterious Maya" he said crossing his arms. "Who was it?"

"The head boy" she said hesitantly and Xavian looked surprised.

"I didn't know Longbottom could--" he suddenly paused and looked up at something. "Get lost Riddle" Xavian said with a dark expression and Hermione immediately turned to find Tom standing behind her.

"Manners Potter" Tom said sneering at him. "That's hardly the way to talk to a head boy"

"Of course my apologies" Xavian said sarcastically. "Come on Maya, let's go somewhere less suffocating"

"I'm afraid you can't take her Potter" Tom said slowly and he moved to stand by her side.

"Why, do you own her or something?" Xavian snapped.

"For tonight" Tom said smirking at him and Hermione didn't like what was happening. He clearly didn't like Xavian and he was making it sound more sinister when all they were going to do was dance.

"What did you say?" Xavian said in a loud angry voice. She had to make Xavian understand before the situation got out of hand.

"Look Xavian---" she started.

"I think you misunderstood my meaning" Tom cut in. "What I meant was, she's with me and we have to go open the dance in 10 minutes" Xavian suddenly looked at Hermione in shock and disbelief.

"She's with---with you" Xavian said weakly and Tom sneered at him. Before she could say anything Xavian suddenly grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to the other end of the hall. Tom didn't stop them and he angrily narrowed his eyes at the faraway pair. Xavian suddenly released her and ran his hands through his hair. "Maya, what the hell do you think you're doing with a Slytherin?" Xavian said in a low voice. "Especially Tom Riddle" Xavian was probably trying to be protective and she should just reassure him that nothing dangerous was going on.

"Dippet's forcing us to go together" she said trying to be heard above the noise.

"Why?" he said with a disbelieving look.

"The minister of magic's coming and he wants us to show house unity." Xavian didn't look convinced and after a couple of seconds he looked angry.

"No ones good at magic like Riddle" Xavian suddenly said and she raised her eyebrows in confusion. "The wings, he made them didn't he?" he said accusingly. There was a good reason why he had made her new wings but she couldn't explain to Xavian why she had to keep calm around Tom and let him have his way.

"Err" she said not sure how to explain it to Xavian.

"Earlier you said head boy and Longbottom isn't that capable" he said glaring at her. "The only remaining head boy is Riddle" he said in a louder voice. "I bet Dippet didn't force him then" he said nastily. "So why would he make wings for you unless there's something---" Why did everyone always come to that conclusion?

"There's nothing between us" she snapped angrily.

"I thought Susie was mental when she told me all those things about you" he said shaking his head. "I know his handsome but his nasty and dangerous" he said harshly. "Guys like him are only after one thing, especially suppressed ones that have never had a girlfriend before" She didn't like his tone and the way he was looking at her. Was he trying to say that Tom was some kind of a sex maniac? As far as she was convinced it was the complete opposite. Tom couldn't even bare to be near her and he always did his best to avoid touching her.

"Look Xavian we're not together" she said feeling irritated. What could she possibly say to convince stupid people like him?

"Really, then what was he doing to you in the broom closet?" he said sneering at her.

"We were just inspecting a haunted---" she paused and anger suddenly boiled up inside her. Who was he to question her like that? Making her feel like she was on trial and that she had to prove herself innocent. She didn't have to answer to him and she could do whatever she wanted. Who was he to question her? She barely knew him."--wait a minute" she said angrily. "It's none of your business what I do with my life"

"So it's true then" Xavian said nastily. "You're letting this evil git touch you up or maybe you've gone all the way like the whore you are" His words stung and a mixture of anger and disgust filled her up. She couldn't believe he had actually said that to her and she slapped him hard across the cheek. People turned to look at them and Xavian stumbled back clutching his cheek.

"Say it again" she yelled pointing her wand and more people turned to look at them.

"The truth hurts, doesn't it" Xavian said drawing his wand and Tom ran towards them.

"Expeliarmus" Tom shouted appearing by her side and Xavian's wand flew out of his hand. "Get lost Potter" Tom snarled and Xavian ran.

"Riddle" one of the professors shouted from the other end of the hall. "What's going on?"

"Just an argument between students" he answered back. "It's been resolved"

Anger was still raging through her and she continued to point her wand at where Xavian had been. "Stop being stupid Granger" Tom said glaring at her. "People are staring at you" Realising he was right she slowly put the wand down. "The ministers due to arrive soon, move Granger" he said turning and he walked forward. She put her wand away and followed him. She had to be focused on carrying out her plan and she tried not to dwell too much on what Xavian had said. They stood at a clearing with Bones and Longbottom. Tom stared ahead expressionlessly and she observed peoples costumes. "What did Potter say?" Tom suddenly asked and she glared at him. Everything was Tom's fault. She wouldn't have been sleeping in a broom closet in the first place if he hadn't scared the crap out of her and then to make the situation worse he had to go and shut himself inside with her. Teenage boys normally went inside broom closets to make out with girls and people were obviously assuming the same thing about them. They didn't know that Tom Riddle wasn't a normal teenage boy and that if he was inside a broom closet with someone it meant torture not kissing. She didn't answer his question and he stared at her unblinking for a while then he turned to look the other way.

"Maya" Susan said suddenly appearing with her date and her girls were standing behind Susan with their dates. Most of the girls were dreamily staring at Tom and their dates didn't look too pleased about it. Susan stared at Tom for a while and Tom's expression was blank as usual. Hermione cleared her throat loudly and Susan snapped her eyes away. "The wings" Susan suddenly said noticing and Hermione immediately felt guilty. "What did you--?"

"I'm so sorry Susan" Hermione said. "Your wings, they---"

"These are fabulous" Susan said excitedly and pulled Hermione aside. "He made them for you, didn't he" Susan whispered. "That is so romantic-" she continued placing a hand on her heart. "- and they look so much better with the red dress" Susan suddenly took a step back and looked around. "Hey have you seen Xav?" Susan said loudly. "I can't seem to find him anywhere"

"I haven't seen him" Hermione said quickly and she suddenly noticed Tom looking at her with a raised eyebrow.

"He's probably late" Susan said dismissively and grabbed her by the arm. Susan pulled her further away and brought her lips close to her ear. She knew what kind of things Susan was going to say and she really didn't want to hear it. "Tom is looking so bloody sexy" Susan whispered. "Don't you just want to throw him onto the floor and tear his clothes of?" Hermione wanted to do no such thing and she tried to get away from Susan but Susan tightened her grip. "Now picture this" Susan continued excitedly and a feeling of dread filled Hermione. "His face is resting between your thighs-" Hermione felt sick as a disturbing image entered her mind. "-while his wet warm tongue is slowly licking your---"

"Merlin, Susan" Hermione shouted and forcefully shoved her away. She almost fell and she steadied herself in time. She could always easily visualise things and right now she wished she didn't have that ability. Susan's girls laughed and they obviously knew what kind of stuff Susan had said to her.

"She's made you feel faint hasn't she" Morgana called out and a few more laughter followed.

Hermione noticed Tom looking at her and she couldn't help but turn bright red. He could never find out what Susan had been telling her and she hoped to God he hadn't overheard anything. This Susan girl had serious issues.

"Have a nice time everyone" she said loudly and walked closer to Tom. She hoped they would get the hint and leave.

"Oh, I see how it is" Susan said winking. "Have a good time Maya" Susan left with her date and the rest of her group followed.

"What was that about?" Tom asked looking at her questioningly.

"Nothing" she said quickly. "Just stupid girly gossip" she said looking at anything but him. He didn't say anything and for a while they just stood there watching other people.

The doors that lead outside to the grounds suddenly opened and everyone excitedly looked on. A line of black ministry cars landed outside and an old man with long grey hair came out surrounded by 20 aurors. The old man was dressed in expensive red velvet robes and a sweeping cloak. He had a burgundy wooden cane and it had a huge red ruby stuck at the top. There was no mistaking who the man was. It had to be the minister of magic and she noticed Tom looking at the man sourly. He had to be jealous of the man's power or money and it could even be both. She watched as Dippet, Slughorn and Dumbledore went out to greet them and soon the minister was inside the great hall. The aurors were stationed at each corner of the hall and four of them remained by the ministers side. Dippet introduced Bones and Longbottom to the minister and then he introduced Tom and Hermione.

"Ah, this is the talented young man you were talking about" the minister said looking at Tom distastefully and Tom stared back expressionlessly. "And these are all his designs" he said looking around the hall.

"Yes all of them" Dippet said proudly.

"His always achieved outstanding every year" the minister said looking at Tom again.

"He never gets anything below 90%" Dippet said looking towards Tom fondly.

"And the girl" the minister said turning his wrinkly face towards her.

"Achieves nothing below 85%, she's talented as well"

"A Slytherin and a Ravenclaw" the minister said leaning on his cane heavily. "They actually get along Armando"

"They work together very well and it's the same throughout the whole school" Dippet said. "I've made house rivalries a thing of the past" Hearing this Dumbledore and Slughorn exchanged a look.

"Despite being from opposite houses their attending a dance together" the minister said standing back straight again. "I am impressed" the minister said looking at Bones and Longbottom holding hands. "And they don't appear to have been forced" the minister suddenly said looking at Hermione and Tom. Dippet slightly paled but still managed to maintain a smile.

"Minister I would never do such a thing" Dippet said looking slightly worried.

She suddenly realised the Minister was pointedly staring at her and Tom and they weren't smiling or holding hands but were they meant to. Tom must have thought the same thing as he briefly made eye contact with her and she wasn't sure what to do next.

"Excellent work Armando" the minister said breaking the tension. "I'll see if I can arrange an order of Merlin, 3rd class for your hard work" Dippet looked over the moon and Slughorn and Dumbledore exchanged another look. "Were the family names Riddle and Granger" the Minister suddenly asked. Tom and Hermione both tensed and they knew what was coming next.

"I'm afraid so" Dippet said with a low voice.

"A pity that such talented students should have tainted backgrounds" Tom's hand clenched into fists and Hermione bit the insides of her cheeks. "Still, I wish you both good luck in the future" the minister said stiffly and his expression clearly showed dislike towards them. "I believe Mr Malfoy's son attends Hogwarts" the minister said in a pleasant tone.

"Ah yes, I'll fetch Abraxas for you" Dippet said walking of. Soon the Minster was talking to Malfoy and his expression was so welcoming and kind. Hermione felt sick as she watched the scene in front of her and Tom's hands were still balled into fists but his face was blank. Dippet introduced the Minister to the whole school and this was followed by the minister making a speech. Then numerous pictures were taken by journalists and finding the camera flashes blinding Hermione closed her eyes. Dippet suddenly called for silence and Professor Jane Hedger motioned for her and Tom to go into the centre of the clearing. With everyone watching they walked towards the centre and Tom was clenching and unclenching his hands while Hermione felt dizzy and nervous. Bones and Longbottom were already waiting in dancing position and they slowly walked towards each other. Tom's face was expressionless and Hermione tried to keep a blank face but failed miserably.

For a couple of seconds they just stared at each other and then Tom bravely held up his hand towards her. His hand was slightly shaking and Hermione quickly grasped his hand with an equally shaky hand. He lightly placed a hand on her waist and she lightly grasped his shoulder. Then they forced themselves to walk closer and look at each other. She noticed Tom's blank face dissolve to reflect fear and dislike but it never lasted more than the blink of an eye. The music started up and they automatically began to dance to their learned steps. It was a fast tune and they moved in time with the music. She was glad she didn't step on his feet and everything was going perfectly. The fast tune suddenly faded into a slow tune and they slowed down to match the music. They danced for a couple of minutes until the other students were signalled to join in and soon they were no longer the centre of attention but they carried on dancing.

Their slow movements made her more aware of his touch, although he was holding her lightly she could feel the warmth of his embrace seeping into her. She didn't know why but her heart was beating at a faster pace and she was beginning to feel slightly dizzy. He adjusted his hold on her side and the feel of his hand rubbing across her satin clad skin made her involuntarily shiver. She suddenly became aware of his warm breath against her neck and she desperately tried to block out the sensation but it was no use. The lights were dim and the glow of his robes made him stand out. She stared into his eyes to find they were unblinking and she continued to stare at them mesmerised. As they continued to dance her mind became unfocused and she became lost to her senses. She picked up a warm spicy scent. She was sure it was a mixture of cloves and sandalwood. It was quite pleasant and she was starting to like it. Her gaze became dreamier and she inhaled deeply. His face, it was so perfect and beautiful. He looked so handsome in his robes. How can anyone so good looking exist? Beauty like that should only be granted to Gods. The warmth of his embrace was so comforting and she wanted to remain in his arms forever. Lost in him she gently swayed to the music and the entire hall full of people disappeared from her mind. It was just her and him. She didn't want the music to ever end, she wanted to remain like this and dance with him for eternity.

He suddenly blinked making her snap out of her thoughts and the room full of people were back. She felt sick and disgusted with herself as she recalled the things she had thought. How could she think these things? He was lord Voldemort. A heartless monster in disguise and he was nothing but ugly. Maybe her unfocused mind had registered him as a normal boy and that had to be the reason why she had allowed herself to have those thoughts. Hermione was sure she wouldn't have thoughts like that if she was focused and remembered he was actually lord Voldemort. She suddenly realised he had moved far away throughout the dance and he was staring at her hand on his shoulder with a mixture of distaste and fear. She felt angry and annoyed with his behaviour. Her blood wasn't going to contaminate him or anything and she didn't know why he thought he was all high and mighty when he was a half-blood himself. Didn't the Minster of magic make him see the light today or did he still think he was pure blood when he wasn't and she glared at him as they continued to move. He wasn't the only one that wasn't enjoying the dancing and she had no desire to dance with him either. She suddenly let go of him and took a step back. She felt like a burden had been lifted of her shoulders and Tom also looked relieved.

He wordlessly walked towards the long refreshments table and she glanced at the poison filled ring. It could be her moment now and with her heat beating unevenly she trailed after him. Hermione carefully watched him from the other side of the table and hoped he would eat or drink something but he just stared at the contents. Suddenly feeling thirsty she poured herself a cup of lemonade and continued to watch him.

"Hello mudblood" Malfoy's annoying voice sounded behind her and she momentarily closed her eyes in irritation. She had a murder to carry out and Malfoy was distracting her. She slammed her cup of lemonade on the table and turned.

"Go away" she said glaring at Malfoy.

"If Riddle's not up for it you could dance with me" Malfoy said grinning at her suggestively. "You know for a mudblood you aren't that bad looking" he said trailing his eyes down and her blood started to boil when she noticed he was pointedly staring at her chest.

"Remove your eyes Malfoy" she snapped.

"Your fiery temper always turns me on" he taunted continuing to look at her chest. "Why don't you make me mudblood" Hermione couldn't take it any more and she pointed her wand at him.

"That's hardly the way for a head girl to behave" he said looking up at her wand. "All I did was ask for a dance" he said innocently. Tom suddenly appeared and grabbed Malfoy by the hair. Malfoy jumped and his eyes widened in fear.

"Leave her alone" Tom hissed tugging on Malfoy's hair. He forcefully pushed Malfoy forward and released him. Malfoy steadied himself and quickly ran off. "Are you stupid Granger?" Tom said glaring at her. "What do you think you're doing?" She lowered her wand realising how foolishly she had acted. She could have ruined her mission if she had attacked Malfoy and she had no doubt she would have been expelled because she had previously attacked Malfoy. If Malfoy had said hurtful things she could have controlled herself but she wasn't used to dealing with perverts and that had made her lose control. "Do you have a wish to get expelled?" he said coldly. Why was he getting so worked up about it? Didn't he want her to get expelled and be out of his way?

"Why do you care Riddle?" she snapped.

"I don't" he almost yelled. "But it would be such a waste of talent and that's what purebloods like Malfoy's want" he said harshly and clenched his hands into fists. Did he just compliment her in his twisted way? Tom thought she had talent when he always said she was stupid in lessons. The dark lord had always been pureblood crazy and here he was acting like he was against them. She knew she should drop the matter and walk away but she decided to push it.

"Isn't that what you want Riddle?" Hermione said venomously. "Purebloods to take over"

"That's not want I want" he said angrily. Yeah right, he must be using his superb acting skills. She really shouldn't say more but all the feelings of being treated like she was something diseased made her feel like talking on.

"Liar" she snapped. "You always treat me like I'm contaminated" she said glaring at him. "My touch disgust's you and you hate touching me-" she said lowering her voice. "-because I have muggle blood running through my veins" His expression immediately went blank and he closed his eyes. She shouldn't have said anything. She couldn't ever recall him closing his eyes when they argued and maybe that meant he was seriously angry. Expecting a violent out burst any second now she fearfully took a step back. Tom suddenly opened his eyes and looked down at the floor.

"Your blood status doesn't bother me" he said in a low voice and he calmly walked away leaving Hermione confused. What did he mean by that? He was probably lying to protect his future ambitions and she would put a stop to his future tonight. Hermione nervously stroked her ring and carefully kept an eye on Tom.

For the next half hour she observed him from a distance but he wasn't making an attempt to eat or drink anything. What if he never ate or drank? There was still time and she couldn't lose hope. Another half an hour went by. Tom broke up a couple of fights between students and confiscated various harmful objects. Still keeping an eye on him she broke up a fight between some girls. Ten minutes passed and she suddenly noticed him walking towards the long refreshments table. Feeling hopeful she followed him and pretended to observe the contents on the other end of the table. Out of the corner of her eyes she carefully watched him and he was staring at the items just like last time. Tom picked up a bottle of butter beer and stared at it unsure. Not the staring thing again, she mentally yelled. Please drink it, drink it. As if her prayers were answered he started to unscrew the lid and she felt like jumping in joy. Okay, so far so good but how was she going to tip in the poison without him noticing? A few seconds later an idea came to her. She had to distract him somehow, poison the drink and hopefully he would resume drinking from the same bottle again. Hermione picked up a plate of nibbles and dropped it. The plate crashed to the floor and smashed into pieces.

"Oops" she said loudly and Tom glared at her from a distance. He set down the bottle and started to come over with an angry expression.

"Why are you so clumsy Granger?" Tom said glaring at her.

"I would have repaired the plate but I can't see it" she said looking apologetic. "I don't know how to undo the mist"

"I'll take care of it" he said drawing his wand. "Just don't break anything else" While Tom was busy removing the mist she walked to the other end of the table. She kept an eye on Tom and quickly grabbed the bottle. She unscrewed the lid and her hands started to shake as she attempted to open the ring. After a few attempts she managed to click it open and she quickly looked around. No one was looking and they all seemed busy. Watching Tom from the corner of her eye she drew the open ring closer to the bottle's neck. All she had to do now was tip in the liquid and she heard Tom's faint voice muttering the repairing incantations. If the plate was fixed it wouldn't be long before he came back and she had to do this fast. Hermione tried to add a few drops but her hand was shaking so badly that she ended up accidentally tipping in the whole liquid. Never mind, it was too late to undo the mistake now. She hastily screwed the lid back and left the bottle in its usual place. She clicked the ring shut and quickly walked back to the other end of the table.

Her heart started to beat loudly and she poured herself another glass of lemonade. She gulped down the entire glass and watched Tom replace the mist. He started to walk back towards the butter beer bottles and she quickly poured herself another glass of lemonade. He picked up the bottle of butter beer he had previously inspected and her heart started to beat violently. She quickly gulped down the second glass of lemonade and watched him unscrew the lid. He brought the bottle close to his mouth and a feeling of joy filled her up. He was going to drink it, he would die and lord Voldemort would be no more. Hermione held her breath as Tom deeply drank from the bottle.

**Thanks for the lovely reviews readers. A special thanks to Liv. I'm so happy that an English teacher thinks my story is readable and now I don't feel so bad about my writing. **

**I made a picture for this chapter and the links on my profile page. Leave reviews and I'll try to update as soon as soon as I finish my coursework. **


	22. Killing an innocent

Tom continued to drink from the bottle and any minute now Hermione was expecting to see a reaction but nothing happened. He stopped drinking and started to inspect a plate of pumpkin pastries. Her eyes widened and she continued to stare at him feeling shocked. What was going on? Why wasn't it working? The effect was supposed to be immediate. She shakily ran a hand through her hair as she watched him bite into the pastry and take another swig from the bottle. How was this possible? She had just added a deadly poison to his drink and it wasn't having any effect on him. It only required a few drops and she had tipped in the whole thing so why wasn't it working?

Maybe she had brewed it incorrectly but she had followed the instruction word for word and that couldn't be the cause. A familiar looking bottle suddenly caught her eye and she realised in horror that in her haste she had added the poison to the wrong bottle. No wonder it wasn't having an effect on him, the poison wasn't even in his bottle. She doubted he would try to drink another bottle and the chance of it being the one she had poisoned was hopeless. To make things worse she had accidentally used up all the poison and she couldn't even try again. Hermione couldn't believe how horribly wrong the plan had gone, all because she was stupid enough to add it to the wrong bottle. She felt like crying and screaming in frustration. The killer of her parents and friends was still walking around and it was all her fault. A few tears formed in her eyes and streaked down her cheeks.

"Miss Granger" Dumbledore's voice sounded behind her. Oh Merlin, Dumbledore couldn't know. She was sure no one had seen her add the poison. She quickly wiped away her tears and turned to face him. Dumbledore's usual piercing gaze wasn't their and he was staring at her wings with happy twinkling eyes. "I do not think I mentioned earlier but your wings are magnificent" His words made Hermione's worry immediately vanish.

"Thank your sir" she said forcing a smile.

"I am quite impressed by your spell work" he said peering at the wings more closely.

"Actually sir, I didn't make them"

"May I inquire as to who did" he said with a curious expression.

"I made them" Tom said suddenly appearing by her side and Hermione almost jumped.

"You made them" Dumbledore said and the twinkle immediately disappeared from his eyes.

"Why? Do you doubt my capabilities sir?" he said sharply and Dumbledore briefly had a puzzled expression on his face.

"Of course not Tom" Dumbledore said calmly and his gaze flickered back and forth between her and Tom. "I merely wished to congratulate the maker on their impressive spell work" he said slowly and his eyes became fixed on her.

"Thank you sir" Tom said coldly. Dumbledore was staring at her with a concerned expression and Hermione knew what he was worried about. He was wondering why a selfish person like Tom Riddle made her such beautiful wings. The Dumbledore of her time had firmly held the belief that the dark lord could not love and she knew he wouldn't assume like everyone else that they had something romantic going on between them. As she was a mysterious outsider with enough power to get through the barriers of Hogwarts, he was probably coming to the conclusion that she was feeding Tom important information in exchange for his services.

"Enjoy the evening" Dumbledore suddenly said with the twinkle back in his eyes and he turned to leave. Tom hatefully bore his eyes into Dumbledore's back as he walked away.

"Riddle" Longbottom shouted waving from a distance. "Could do with your help" Tom speed of towards Longbottom's direction and Hermione stared at the refreshments table feeling tearful. She suddenly noticed Dumbledore approaching and her pulse quickened as he moved towards the butter beer bottles. The poisoned bottle was still there but what were the chances of him picking up that one? There were dozens of other bottles and she should just calm down. She took a couple of deep breaths and casually walked towards the bottles with the intention of removing the poisoned one. Dumbledore picked up the poisoned bottle and Hermione froze. Her eyes widened and her heart violently banged away against her ribs. What should she do? She couldn't murder Dumbledore but he would die if he drank it. It would be suspicious if she asked him to hand over the bottle and no one could suspect her. She had to stay at Hogwarts and finish of the dark lord. Dumbledore unscrewed the lid and she started to panic. She had to stop him somehow but how? Dumbledore lifted the bottle towards his lips and all logical thoughts flew out of her mind. He opened his mouth and she was about to shout for him to stop.

"Professor Dumbledore sir" A squeaky voice interrupted and Dumbledore lowered the bottle. Relief spread through her and she was glad she hadn't shouted anything. She suddenly realised a house elf had been the source of the voice and it bowed down to Dumbledore.

"No need to bow down Lolly" Dumbledore said cheerfully.

"I is not wanting to disrespect master, good elf bow down to master" the elf bowed down once more. "The headmaster is wanting you sir" Dumbledore set down the bottle and Hermione relaxed. He suddenly picked it up again and all her previous fear returned.

"Lolly would you like a butter beer?" Dumbledore asked and held the poisoned bottle towards the elf. Oh no, the house elf was now going to die.

"Lolly would be honoured master" the house elf said in a high pitched voice and took the bottle. She was glad it wasn't Dumbledore but she didn't want the house elf to die either. She couldn't do anything to arouse suspicion and the idea of killing an innocent house elf put her in emotional turmoil. She had half a mind to run up and knock the bottle out of its hands but the logical side of her brain told her it wouldn't be a good move. Before she could decide for certain the house elf suddenly drank from the bottle. The house elf's eyes immediately widened and it dropped the bottle with a scream. Hermione's heart jumped violently and intense guilt filled her up. The bottle smashed into pieces and the house elf fell to the floor. She watched feeling horrified as it started to shake and make loud wheezing noises. Everyone turned to look and shouts and screams filled the air.

"Lolly" Dumbledore shouted and he cast a few spells on the house elf but it didn't help. He sent a distress signal into the air and shouted at everyone to stay back. The headmaster and the other professors soon appeared. "Horace fetch a bezoar stone" Dumbledore shouted and Slughorn ran out the hall. Dippet looked panicky and all the aurors immediately surrounded the minister. Tom stared at the dying house elf with an unreadable expression and took a step back. Hermione watched on feeling guilty as the house elf continued to wheeze and shake violently.

"Out the way" Slughorn shouted pushing his way through the crowd. Using Dumbledore's help Slughorn shoved the bezor stone down the house elf's throat and the elf continued to shake. Everyone was looking hopeful but Hermione knew the bezoar stone wouldn't work against Letum Sero. The house elf started to make chocking sounds and foam started to bubble out of its mouth.

"Why isn't it working Albus?" Dippet shouted and the house elf suddenly stopped moving. Some of the girls screamed and shouts filled the air. Panic and confusion broke out through the hall and the Professors tried to calm things down. "All student's return to your dormitories immediately" Dippet said with a magically magnified voice. The aurors immediately escorted the minister of magic outside and drove away but two aurors remained behind. The aurors lifted the house elf's body onto a stretcher and covered it with a cloth. Hermione suddenly noticed Tom staring at it unblinking and he was holding his hands behind his back. She had never seen him in that pose and she couldn't interpret any meanings from it. He was probably being reminded of moaning myrtle's death and she briefly wondered what he was feeling. Was he feeling happy and recalling memories of killing Myrtle or was he remembering the house elf dying and revelling in its suffering. The aurors started to levitate the stretcher away and she snapped out of her thoughts. Hermione started to feel terrible and guilty again and she watched until the stretcher was out of sight. Everyone was trying to leave the hall and there was chaos as they all tried to get through the doors at once.

"Everyone step back" Tom shouted with a magically magnified voice. "Get into a line" The students immediately obeyed and after a while everyone was out the great hall.

Ten minutes later Hermione paced her bedroom with tears in her eyes. Everything had gone wrong. The dark lord still lived and she had just murdered a house elf. She had killed a death eater before but the thought of having killed something good and innocent made her feel so bad. She hadn't been able to get her revenge and she punched her pillow feeling angry. She had let her parents down and Harry and Ron as well. She was meant to kill the dark lord for their deaths and she had failed. Everything would have worked out if she had just added the poison to the right bottle and this was this was all her fault. She sat on her bed and her crying turned to loud sobs. After a long time she wiped away her tears and decided to get changed.

Hermione looked into the mirror and stared at her reflection. Her black mascara had run down her face and her red lipstick was smudged. She cleared away all traces of make-up from her face and the wings suddenly caught her attention. She stepped closer to the mirror and properly looked at her wings for the first time. She couldn't deny they were beautiful and she hated the fact that Tom Riddle had made them. She was meant to get revenge for her loved ones deaths and here she was wearing wings that their killer had made. Anger filled her up and she tried to make the wings disappear but she couldn't do it. After a few more failed attempts she knew she would have to go and find Tom. Hermione really didn't want to see him but she didn't have a choice. There was no way she would be able to sleep with these huge things sticking on her back and she took a couple of deep breaths to calm her anger. She opened her door and found the common room empty. If he wasn't in the common room then he was obviously in his bedroom and she walked up to his door feeling uncomfortable. She forced herself to knock and there was no answer. She knocked louder and there was still no answer.

"Riddle" she called out and knocked again. The door suddenly opened and a furious looking Tom Riddle stepped out. He quickly slammed the door shut before she could get a glimpse of his room and he was still wearing the green dress robes but it wasn't glowing anymore.

"What do want Granger?" he snapped.

"The wings Riddle" she said hesitantly. "I can't undo them" he glared at her for a while then his expression went blank and he took out his wand.

"Turn around" he said holding the wand up high. Hermione immediately turned and expected to feel the familiar sensation of warmth and pulling. She suddenly felt something and her heart violently jumped in shock. She refused to believe what she had felt and she thought she was going insane until she felt it again. This time the feel of warm skin rubbing against her back was continuous and she knew it was his hand touching her. Her breath caught in her throat and she couldn't find the strength to move. She suddenly realised Tom wasn't touching her back. His touches were on a body part that had never been their before and it was further away from her back. Hermione came to a shocking realisation that it was her wings. She had thought they were lifeless and until now she hadn't realised how real they were. She had no idea she would be able to feel it if someone touched them and the sensation was almost identical to having someone stroke the bare skin of your back. Shivers went down her spine and her breath started quicken against her will.

He continued to stroke her wings and his long fingers suddenly dug into her feathers. The feeling of soft rubbing suddenly became replaced with fingers pressing into her flesh and squeezing it. She drew in a sharp intake of breath and knots formed in her stomach. The actions of his fingers were rough but gentle enough that they didn't hurt and it was like a deep massage. He grabbed a handful of feathers and gave one of her wings a soft squeeze. A tingling sensation shot through her and she wanted to move but her legs felt like jelly. He suddenly dug his long fingers in really deep and started to roll some of the feathers between his finger tips. She bit her tongue to suppress a gasp and she started to feel faint. She could feel the feather roots twist on her wing and it felt like someone was lightly pinching her skin. It kind of hurt but it was highly pleasurable at the same time. Her heart rate increased dramatically and she started to feel dizzy. It was getting too much to handle and she didn't think she could take it anymore. She didn't have the energy to move and several times she opened and closed her mouth to say something. She mustered up all her strength and focused on speaking.

"Riddle" she finally managed to whisper weakly. "What do you think your doing?"

"Admiring my handi work before I destroy it" Tom said slowly and he continued to caress her wings. "I've never done something like this before" he suddenly started to scissor his fingers through the feathers and her knees suddenly went weak. "It's one of my newly invented spells" he started to move his fingers at a faster pace and it took all her strength not to drop to the floor. If Tom had invented the spell himself and he had never tried it out before then he probably didn't know she could feel his touch. "Excellent realistic texture--" he said withdrawing his hand and relief spread through her "--but completely lifeless" He had no idea how wrong he was and now she knew for certain he didn't know she could feel him touch her wings but there was no way she was going to tell him the truth. Hermione felt the tip of his wand poke into her back and he started to mutter a string of incantations. She suddenly felt the sensation of warm running water pouring over her back and a pulling feeling on her shoulder blades. A couple of seconds later she couldn't feel anything and she looked sideways to find the wings were gone. Tom wordlessly walked back into his room and as soon as his door shut she ran back into her room.

Hermione leaned against her door for support and took in a couple of deep breaths. She could still feel the ghost of his touch and she closed her eyes trying to forget but his phantom fingers kept tormenting her. She vigorously rubbed her back to make the feeling go away and she forced herself to stop thinking about it. She sat at the dressing table and brushed her hair. Her mind became empty as she continued to brush and Tom's imaginary fingers crept back into her thoughts. She paused the brush feeling annoyed and hardly scratched her back with the hair brush. She closed her eyes and pushed the memory right to the back of her mind.

Hermione changed into her nightclothes and crept into bed. She recalled the events of the Halloween ball and she felt like a failure but she wasn't going to give up. There was still time and she would kill the dark lord soon. She thought of her parents and tears came to her eyes. Hermione tried to recall the happy memories and a smile formed on her lips as she drifted of to sleep.

**A huge thank you for the reviews everyone. It was fun writing this chapter and when Tom touches her wings it was hard to come up with ways to describe how it would feel on the human body so you could understand what she was feeling. **

**In case anyone's wondering. Tom did not lie and he actually doesn't know that she could feel his touch. **

**Now, I know all of you have gotten used to my fast updates but I won't be updating until 16th or 17th of July or maybe one week later than that. This is because I need time to revise for the exams I have to retake and also to do coursework. I am so jealous of people enjoying their summer holiday while I have to study. Please leave reviews. **


	23. Mr perfect wins

The next day the Daily Prophet had the house elf's murder as headline news. The newspaper was raging with speculation on whether this had been an attempt to assassinate the minister of magic or Albus Dumbledore. Dippet was under immense pressure as he received angry owls from parents worried about their child's safety and he had to give interviews to reassure them. Aurors were sent to take statements and the head girls and boys were to be questioned first. Hermione waited outside Dippet's office with Bones, Longbottom and Tom. She appeared calm on the outside but her heart was rapidly hammering away on the inside. She couldn't think of leaving behind any evidence but she was still worried.

"Come in" a voice said and the office door opened. Dippet was sitting behind his desk and Dumbledore was standing behind him. Two aurors were present and they were sitting in front of four empty chairs.

"Sit down everyone" Dippet said gesturing towards the chairs and they all sat down.

"Which one of you boys is Tom Riddle?" one of the aurors asked narrowing his eyes.

"I am" Tom said staring at the auror unblinking and the auror seemed taken aback by Tom's unafraid behaviour but recovered quickly.

"You alone ordered the refreshments?"

"Correct sir" Tom said still staring at him unblinking.

"And they were all prepared by the Hogwarts kitchen elves" the auror said creasing his brows.

"Yes sir"

"Did you order any food or drink outside of Hogwarts?"

"No sir" the auror sighed and wrote something down.

"No one else was involved in the ordering" the other auror said looking at Tom with a piercing gaze. "From what I understand boy" the auror said getting up. "You were meant to be working as a group" the auror suddenly placed both of his hands on Tom's armrest and Tom blinked for the first time since they had entered the office. "So why was it only you?" the auror said accusingly and he leaned down close to Tom's face. Tom slowly leaned back as far as he could and both of his hands clenched into fists. He stared at the auror with dislike and there was a glint of fear in his eyes but it disappeared in seconds. Even though it seemed impossible, Tom Riddle had somehow managed to turn paler and she would never have known if she hadn't noticed the faint trace of blue veins on his cheeks.

"It's easier to have one person place an order for everything than to have four different people order various items." Tom said in a tone that suggested the auror was completely stupid. The auror stared at him speechless and Tom continued to stare at him emotionlessly.

"Right, well" the auror said drawing away from Tom with an uncomfortable expression and Tom's hands slowly uncoiled. "So all of you set out the refreshments together?" the auror said sitting back down and they all nodded to say yes. "No one else was there?" they all nodded to say no. "Did you leave the refreshments unattended at any time?"

"We left after setting the tables" Longbottom said nervously.

"Merlin" the auror whispered pausing his quill.

"When the four of you arrived, did anything seem out of place or tampered with?" the other auror suddenly asked.

"Well we--we all didn't arrive together" Bones said in a low voice. "Riddle and Granger were there before us" Hermione's heart beat speed up. Stupid Bones, why did she have to say that? Now the aurors would wonder why she had arrived early and it was all because Tom was a punctuality freak but would the auror believe that? She suddenly noticed Dumbledore staring at them with a grave expression and her heart jumped. As if the aurors weren't enough, now she would have Dumbledore on her back as well.

"I see" the auror said scribbling down something fast. "And throughout the evening did you see anyone acting suspicious near the food?"

"I don't think so" Bones said grasping Longottom's hand for support.

"How about you Mr Longbottom?"

"No sir" Longbottom said.

"Longbottom and Bones you may leave" the auror said exchanging a look with the other auror. Bones and Longbottom left looking relieved and Hermione momentarily stopped breathing. If they were allowed to leave that meant she and Tom were being suspected of something. Oh Merlin, this wasn't good.

"So why did you arrive early boy?" the auror said narrowing his eyes.

"I didn't arrive early" Tom said looking cross and the aurors looked confused. "Longbottom and Bones were late" Hermione felt relieved at his words. She had always thought they had arrived extra early but since they were on time the aurors couldn't accuse them. The auror scratched his head and the other auror looked tired but Dumbledore continued to stare at them gravely.

"Well, did you see anything or anyone acting suspicious during the evening?" an auror said looking hopeless.

"No sir" Tom said nodding his head.

"Miss Granger did you arrive before or after Mr Riddle" the other auror said boring his eyes into her.

"I--I was going to the dance with him so we arrived together" she forced out.

"I see" the auror said suddenly smiling at her. "Did you see anything or anyone acting suspicious during the evening?"

"No sir" the auror sighed and wrote something down.

"Okay, you two may go." The auror said waving a hand dismissively and feeling relieved she got up. Tom and Hermione headed towards the door.

"Mr Riddle" the other auror said making him halt and turn.

"Yes sir" he said forcing a smile on his lips.

"Your headmaster here has been telling me about your extraordinary grades"

"They're not that extraordinary sir" Tom said looking at the floor with a humble expression and Hermione knew he was acting but it looked so genuine.

"He's just being modest" Dippet said looking at Tom fondly.

"I like that" the auror said smiling. "People that always boast about how good they are can get annoying and you're exactly what we're looking for" the auror said taking out a card. "You see, intelligent students seem to be the scared type that have never seen life beyond their books but you were completely unafraid during the questioning" looks like the auror had failed to notice Tom's one second glint of fear or the fact he had paled. "We need brilliant students with a spine and I insist you take this card Mr Riddle" the auror said holding the card towards him and Tom took it. "After graduation send an owl to the address and quote my name. I guarantee you will be given a place within the auror department" Hermione suddenly had the huge urge to laugh. The dark lord had just been offered a job as an auror. What was the world coming to?

"Thank you sir" he took the card smiling but the smile didn't reach his eyes. She walked out after Tom feeling light. As she walked down the corridor she recalled the way Tom had acted. He always recovered so fast and no one had probably noticed his reactions but Hermione had observed him for long enough to know that anything seen on Tom's face was never imagined or caused by the trick of light. She didn't know what the aurors blood status was but Tom couldn't have known either, so why did he have a problem with the auror leaning close? Looks like he hated anyone getting close to him and it didn't really surprise her. Dumbledore had said he only loved himself and the dark lord probably thought he was so high and mighty that contact with mere humans probably disgusted him. If he really hated everyone that much, he should go live alone in some forest and do the world a huge favour.

At the end of the week Hermione sat reading the Daily Prophet at breakfast. The paper reported that the poison had been identified as Letum Sero and it was expert opinion that only an assassin sent by someone important was behind it since the ingredient Moonflower was almost extinct. The Hogwarts students and staff were ruled out as suspects and security measures were tightened for the minister of magic. She glared at the newspaper and felt like ripping it to shreds. If she had succeeded then Tom would have been dead and they wouldn't have even suspected her due to the use of moonflower. Feeling angry with her failure she scrunched up the paper and threw it on the table.

"What's gotten into you this morning?" Susan said looking at her.

"Nothing" she said digging her hands into her hair. "Just stressed, taking out my anger"

"Hey, I read somewhere that if you draw out your emotions it helps" A dummy of the dark lord that she could hack to pieces might cool her down but drawing would never work.

"Trust me, that's nonsense" she said picking up a toast.

"Hey Maya"

"What?" she said chewing her toast.

"Guess what?"

"What?"

"Prince charming is looking at you" Susan said giggling. She knew all to well who Susan was talking about and she briefly looked towards the Slytherin table to find Tom staring at her. He was probably trying to use legilimency on her. Why doesn't he just give up?

"I wish he wouldn't" she said gloomily.

"Ever since the dance his been staring at you for an extra 5 minutes" Susan said pointing at her wrist watch.

"What?" she said snapping her head towards Susan "Please don't tell me you've been actually timing this" If the girl said yes then she was seriously mentally disturbed.

"Oh not me" Susan said rolling her eyes. "Kirsten read in Witch glamour that the longer a man stares at you the more he likes you. She wanted to see if it was true so she timed him staring at you before and after the dance." She stared at the girl open mouthed not knowing how to respond. "Extra 3 minutes Maya" Susan said excitedly.

"Great" she said sarcastically. The stupid magazines theory was absurd. You could stare at someone because you hate them or if you were trying to look into their mind like the dark lord was.

"Really" Susan said excitedly.

"I was being sarcastic Susan" she said glaring at her.

"Come on Maya" Susan said creasing her brows. "Stop pretending theirs nothing going on"

"There really isn't" She said crossing her arms.

"I'm not believing that"

"Believe what you want" she hissed angrily.

Hermione headed outside for care of magical creatures. It was cold and shivering she pulled her cloak closer.

"I know its cold--" the professor said addressing the class. "--but this creature here--" the professor picked up something that looked like a ball of fur "--requires a cold climate. Can anyone tell me what it is?" Hermione and Tom's hand immediately shot up and the professor sighed looking between them. "Riddle name it and Granger give me the characteristics" This was the only class where the professor actually felt guilty of choosing between them so the questions were always split in half.

"It's a mountain kevatrix" Tom said looking bored and Hermione immediately launched into a detailed explanation about the characteristics. In the end they both received equal house points.

"Your aim is to feed a kevatrix and the milk is in there" the professor said pointing towards a red box. "You have till the end of class, get started"

Everyone rushed towards the huge box with the kevatrix's. Hermione stared at the fur balls resting on hay and randomly picked one. It was warm but other than that it didn't show any signs of being alive. Tom walked away levitating a kevatrix and she followed him with a look of disbelief. Would it have killed him to hold it like everyone else? The dark lord was so extra. He placed a mat on the frosty ground and sat down cross legged. Hermione sat across him and made sure there was a good amount of distance between them. She opened up her textbook and according to the book the kevatrix had to be brought out of its shell by stroking it. A gust of cold wind blew her cloak and with her teeth chattering she readjusted it. She looked at Tom and found him staring at his kevatrix with a sour look. A strong wind suddenly made a gap in his cloak but he didn't bother readjusting it. He appeared completely unaffected by the cold, it was likely that the orphanage didn't have proper heating and having lived there for the most of his life he must be used to the temperature. She inspected his worn out looking cloak. It had to be second hand and she doubted it provided much warmth.

People were stroking their kevatrix's and she started to stroke hers. She carried on for a while but the kevatrix still remained in its fur ball state. The icy wind was making her hand go numb and she was getting annoyed with the lack of response. She looked up to find most people had given up and were using their kevatrix's as a source of warmth by hugging it or placing it on their laps, while some were shouting at it to come out. She looked at Tom and he was still staring at his kevatrix with dislike. Looks like the dark lord hated animals as well as humans but snakes were obviously an exception since Voldemort had kept Nagini close. Was he ever going to touch the kevatrix or was he going to let himself fail in class? It wasn't like him to fail at anything and he would probably touch it after few more minutes of sulking over having to touch something unworthy. He suddenly got up and started to walk towards the milk box, continuing to watch his moving figure Hermione creased her brows in confusion. Why had he gone to fetch the milk when his kevatrix hadn't come out yet?

"Maya" Susan's voice sounded and she turned to find Susan kneeling next to her. "I know what happened at the Halloween dance" her eyes widen at Susan's words. This girl couldn't have seen her add the poison but what if she had?

"What do you know?" she whispered fearfully.

"I know what Xav did" Susan said in an apologetic tone and relief washed through her. "It's all my fault, I shouldn't have told him all those things about you"

"It's okay Susan" she said cheerfully. As long as the girl didn't know about her plan she could tolerate almost anything.

"Really, you're not mad at me" Susan said smiling.

"No"

"Can I say something? Just promise you won't get mad"

"I won't get mad"

"I've been friends with Xav for a long time. He told me the real reason why he did what he did-" Susan suddenly looked nervous. "-and he wants to apologise but he thought it best if I talked to you first" Susan finished in a low voice.

"Okay" she said uncomfortably and Susan suddenly looked back and forth.

"Xav likes you" Susan whispered and her eyebrows shot up in disbelief. It was possible that Xavian could be Harry Potter's grandfather and hearing that just didn't feel right. "I mean he really likes you and he was thinking of asking you out." She really couldn't see how that justified Xavian's behaviour though. "He hates Tom Riddle and when he saw you with Tom, he just got angry and said things he didn't mean." She could understand Xavian got jealous but there was no need for him to say such hurtful things. "He wants to apologise, is that okay Maya? His behaviour had been totally out of line but if he really wanted to apologise she would give him a chance.

"He can apologise if he wants" she forced out and Susan gestured at Xavian to come over. Tom sat back down holding a bottle of milk and she momentarily caught his eyes. He continued to stare at her and when he noticed Xavian approaching his expression darkened but it vanished in seconds. Xavian stared at her for a while and then he cleared his throat. Susan smiled at him encouragingly and Hermione avoided his eyes.

"Maya I--I'm sorry" Xavian said in a low voice. "I shouldn't have said those things about you and if you want to" he paused and knelt down to her level. "If you want to be with Tom then it's none of my business" he whispered. "I'm really sorry" he said looking apologetic and an uncomfortable silence developed as they all waited for her response.

"Apology accepted" she said looking up at him. "And just so you know, I'm not involved with Tom like that" she whispered and noticed Tom staring at her intently.

"I see" Xavian whispered and his expression clearly showed disbelief but he suddenly forced a smile. "Since you're not taken" he said attempting a cheerful tone. "Is there any hope for me?" the nerve of that boy to ask such a question after he had just apologised. She could never like Xavian like that and being related to Harry just made the whole thing weird.

"I don't think I'm ready for that sort of thing" she said uncomfortably.

"Its okay" he said attempting to mask the hurt in his voice. "I'll see you later then" he quickly got up and walked away.

"Thank Merlin you forgave him, he was moody all the week" Susan said sounding relieved. "By the way I don't believe you're not seeing Tom" Susan whispered and before she could reply the girl ran of grinning. She glared in Susan's direction and went back to stroking the creature. She paused noticing Tom's hand hovering above his kevatrix. So the high and mighty dark lord had finally decided to touch it. He skimmed his hand slowly over the fur and sometimes he bent his long fingers almost combing it. His touch was so light, he was hardly stroking it and she wondered why he was even bothering. No one had succeeded by stroking theirs so what made him think he could do it if he wasn't even touching it properly? She continued to watch his fingers gliding and sometimes dipping into fur. She was suddenly reminded of the time he had stroked her wings. The visual continued to trigger the memory of how his fingers had felt and knots formed in her stomach.

She was about to look away when his kevatrix started to shake. A shiny grey head suddenly popped out and four small legs followed. Tom gave it half a smile and Hermione stared open mouthed at the hedgehog like creature. Everyone else started to notice and she couldn't understand how he had done it. She had spent so long on hers and he had barely touched it for a couple of minutes. The creature let out a high pitched squeak and tried to scuttle away. Tom easily captured it and letting out loud cries the kevatrix started to struggle in his grasp. He placed the shaking creature on his lap and held it down with one hand.

"Hush" Tom whispered gently stroking it on the stomach and the kevatrix immediately calmed down. He grabbed the milk bottle and glaring at it he started to feed it. The kevatrix stared back at him with huge eyes and Tom's glaring expression became replaced with a blank one. The image in front of her resembled the dark lord feeding a baby and Hermione felt like laughing. The kevatrix closed its eyes and the milk bottle was half empty now. Tom had fetched the milk before and that meant he must have known he could make it come out. She started to stroke hers but it still remained as a fur ball. Realising the class would end soon she started to use more force and hoped to God it would come out. If it didn't then she would completely fail and she had never failed before. Feeling frustrated she re-read the passage in the book but it was no help. This was not happening. The lowest grade she had ever gotten was an acceptable and even then it had been in divination but now it would be a straight zero. As more time went by she started to feel panicky and she began to stroke it with both hands but there was still no result. She looked at Tom and his kevatrix appeared to be sleeping peacefully. She knew he wouldn't tell her but it was worth a try in case he gave her a clue or a hint.

"How did you do it?" She asked him and he stared at her for a while.

"I stroked it like you're meant to" he suddenly said and his answer was totally unhelpful.

"I've been stroking mine and it doesn't work, what did you do?" She said raising her voice slightly.

"Stroked it" he said softly and she felt like shouting at him.

"I know you stroked it but how did you get it to come out?"

"Like the way you're meant to make it come out" he said slightly tilting his head.

"Which is?" she said in a high pitched voice.

"Why would I tell you Granger?" he said smirking at her and she glared at him. Of course he wouldn't tell her. He knew he would get an outstanding and she would get nothing. She had been competing with him ever since she had arrived and he was never going to pass up the opportunity to outshine her.

"You don't really know the answer, do you Riddle?" she said angrily "You just got lucky" she almost shouted at him and he smiled at her coldly.

"Feeling desperate Granger" he said slowly and she reddened with anger. "Do you want to hold it?" he said lifting up his sleeping kevatrix. "Since you'll never make yours come out, this could be your only chance" he said sneering at her.

"Get lost" she said giving him a hateful look. She went back to stroking her kevatrix and Tom watched her attempts with a smug look. When ten minutes of the lesson remained she took out her wand and prodded it. She seriously felt like shouting crucio but there was no point if she was going to get expelled. She glared at it and soon the end of class was announced. The professor went around inspecting the kevatrix's and he was extremely pleased with Tom. He lifted Tom's kevatrix up and the whole class looked at in awe. Tom's face was expressionless and he appeared bored by the whole attention. Tom received an outstanding and 20 points for Slytherin. She suddenly noticed the professor walking towards her and a feeling of dread filled her up. The professor rotated her kevatrix in his hands and set it back down.

"Well everyone found it hard today" the professor said in a disappointed tone. Never in her life had she heard a professor speak to her like that and Hermione felt like crying. "No need to worry though" the professor said in a cheery tone. "I've decided to give everyone a P for their efforts and a P is better than nothing" her eyes started to water as she watched the professor scribble a huge P next to her name. The professor moved to the next student and she noticed Tom smirking at her. Everyone was putting the kevatrix's back and packing things away but she couldn't be bothered with it. She grabbed her bag and ran.

"Maya" Susan's voice called out but she continued to run. Halfway to Hogwarts her face was soaking wet with tears. She burst in through the doors and ran into the girls toilets. Hermione threw herself onto the floor and drawing up her knees she started to cry loudly. P meant poor and never in her life had she received such a bad grade. She could have lived with an E or an A but a P. She couldn't deal with it and the worse thing was she had been defeated by him. Why did the dark lord have to be a genius in everything? Although she didn't like to admit it, it was true. Tom Riddle was better than her at everything and it didn't matter how hard she tried. While most of her cleverness was down to memorising from books, his knowledge went beyond books and he was actually intelligent. She had seen proof of it during potions and when he made the wings for her at Halloween. She suddenly felt angry at herself for failing to kill him and crying harder she rocked herself back and forth. It was lunch time but she couldn't be bothered to go and eat. Minutes later someone burst through the door and she continued to cry not caring who it was.

"Found her, in here" a voice yelled and Hermione groaned when she recognised Susan's voice. Couldn't she even cry in peace?

"Hey Maya, what's wrong?" Susan said kneeling next to her. "Maya"

"I received a P" Hermione shouted looking up. She buried her head back down and started to cry again.

"Aww sweetie its just one class" Susan said placing an arm around her shoulder. "It doesn't matter"

"It does matter" she said in a muffled voice.

"Cheer up, theirs nothing you can do about it now" Susan said standing up. "Come on, you need to have lunch otherwise you'll fail the afternoon classes due to lack of energy" she didn't want to eat lunch. She would have to see his face and she couldn't stand to look at him now.

"I don't want to eat" she said sniffing.

"I'm not taking no for an answer" Susan said bending down. "Now get up"

"I don't want to sit in the great hall" she said looking up.

"I'll bring something up to the Ravenclaw dorm. Is that okay?" Hermione nodded her head in response. Susan helped her get up and she noticed with blurry eyes that all of Susan's girls were with her. "Kirsten" Susan said to the blond haired girl "Grab us something and all of you go have lunch" Susan was clearly the group leader and Hermione felt bad for breaking up the group.

"There's no need Susan" Hermione said wiping away her tears. "I can manage on my own"

"Nonsense" Susan said holding onto her tightly. "I'm not leaving you in this state"

In the Ravenclaw dorm she sat near the fireplace and Susan sat across her. "Maya are you still crying?" Susan said narrowing her eyes.

"No" she said wiping away a single tear.

"Good and I don't want to see another tear" Susan said handing her a tissue. Kirsten entered with plates of sandwiches and a bottle of juice.

"Sorry, couldn't get anything else" Kirsten said handing Susan the plates. "These are easier to sneak out"

"Thanks" Hermione said taking the juice bottle.

"Cheers Kristen" Susan called out as girl left. "Eat up" she said handing Hermione a plate. "Oh and while we eat I know just the thing to cheer you up" she said in an excited voice and got up. Hermione chewed on her sandwich to find it had tuna and sweet corn filling. Susan sat back down holding a book and Hermione smiled tightly when she saw the title. "What you need is a break from studying" Susan said smiling at her. "You need to be a teenage girl for a while" Susan took a bite out of her sandwich and balancing the book on her knee she opened it. "This book is full of short stories" she said with her mouth full. "You know for a quicke in between classes" she smiled and took another bite out of her sandwich. "I'll read and you just relax, okay" Hermione nodded and smiled. Susan was definitely crazy but she had been nice to her. The girl had talked to her on the first day when no one had wanted to know her, had helped her dress for Halloween and comforted her when she was crying. It was all because of Susan she wasn't going to go hungry today and if Susan wanted her to listen to some witch romance then she would, or at least pretend to. "So which one sounds better?" Susan said scanning the contents page. "My mind screams no but my body won't listen to me or Love potions are wrong but for me it's the only way" They all sounded stupid to Hermione but maybe the love potion one would be less explicit.

"Well" Hermione said taking a sip of orange juice. "Maybe the love potion----"

"Actually love potions boring" Susan said interrupting. "The other one sounds exciting, you know with the not being able to control yourself thing" Susan said excitedly turning the pages. "I haven't read this one" Susan said grinning at her. "Hope you like it" Hermione pretended to listen with interest and whenever things got too explicit she couldn't help but turn red. Hermione was glad when lunch was over and thanking Susan she ran out. She cleared her mind and headed for the afternoon classes.

Hermione entered the Arithmacy classroom and as usual she sat two seats away from Tom. He was watching her but she avoided looking at him and unpacked her things. Professor Dwek started to explain a complex equation and she listened intently.

"Who can solve this equation?" the professor asked and two hands immediately shot up. "Let's have Miss Granger solve something for a change" Dwek said making Hermione smile. She sneaked a glance at Tom as she got up but he didn't appear bothered. She walked up to the black board and easily wrote down the solution. "Excellent Miss Granger, 10 points to Ravenclaw" she sat back down feeling pleased. Professor Dwek handed out parchments with unsolved equations and they were all easy to solve except the last one, no matter how hard she tried she couldn't solve it. She looked up to find Tom staring ahead with his arms crossed and he had obviously finished. Feeling annoyed she jabbed her quill into the table and it snapped in half. He turned towards her and eyed the broken quill with an amused expression. Using a new quill she attempted to solve the equation again and her efforts were fruitless, feeling angry she glared at the parchment unblinking.

"Are you stuck on number 7 or 9?" Tom suddenly asked. He probably wanted to prove he was better than her by telling her the answer.

"I don't need your help Riddle" she hissed.

"I wasn't offering to help" he said turning his chair towards her. "Just curious" he said slightly tilting his head.

"I'm not telling you" she said glaring at him. Tom lazily flicked his wand and her parchment flew towards him. "Hey, give it back" she said trying to snatch the floating sheet but he caught it. She stared at him angrily as he ran his eyes over her working.

"Number 9" He said looking up "That ones actually difficult and you would have the answer if you didn't keep making one silly mistake again and again" he suddenly smiled at her coldly "But then again with your lack of brain power, it is to be expected"

"Keep your opinions to yourself" she snapped and with a wave of her wand she summoned the parchment back.

"This morning's failure still haunting you Granger?" he said slowly and she didn't answer. After outshining her in care of magical creatures he was in a pleasant mood but she knew it wouldn't last long. Soon his usual self would be back and she didn't want to risk making him violent by saying something wrong. She carefully went over her working and after some time she spotted her mistake. She had used an incorrect rune that looked very similar to the one she should have used.

The day ended with her almost falling asleep in the history of magic class. Professor Binns was just too boring and all the students thought the same but for some reason Tom Riddle was an exception. He was listening with an expression of great interest and his attention never wavered. Hermione wondered if he was acting and actually sleeping with his eyes open. He always seemed to manage the impossible and she wouldn't put it past him.

In the evening she sat in the heads common room writing an essay for charms. Tom sat in his usual green armchair and was deeply engrossed in a large text book. Neither of them spoke and an hour went by in silence. Hermione rolled up her finished essay and he was nearly at the end of the book. The entrance door suddenly opened and Longbottom walked in holding a box of chocolates. They were obviously for his girlfriend Cynthia Bones. She started to gather her things and the sound of a throat being cleared made her look up. She was startled to find Longbottom holding the box of chocolates towards her and she stared at him with a confused expression. Why was he giving her chocolates? Tom looked towards them and raised an eyebrow.

"Xavian Potter told me to give this to you" Longbottom said appearing embarrassed and Tom's expression darkened at hearing Xavian's name. She took the box with an uncomfortable expression and Longbottom disappeared into his room. Why would Xavian do that? Didn't she just tell him she wasn't interested? She noticed a small card attached and she opened it to find the words, I'm sorry, written in block capitals. Okay, so he was sorry but wasn't sending her chocolates overdoing it? Well, now that he had given them to her she might as well eat them. She tore open the box and was about to pop one into her mouth when she suddenly remembered something. Romilda Vane had filled chocolates with a love potion and Ron had accidentally eaten them. What if Xavian had spiked the chocolates with a love potion? After all she did reject him and this might be his way of getting revenge. Hermione threw the box of chocolates into the bin and Tom's lips curled into half a smile but it vanished the moment she turned around.

"At least you have some sense" he said shutting his book.

"If your going to be horrible why can't you---" she paused as she suddenly realised he had complimented her in his twisted way. He obviously meant she had enough sense to realise it might be drugged with a love potion but he had to say it in a nasty way. She gathered her things and turned towards the stairs.

"Granger" he said making her halt and turn. "You have to stroke a kevatrix very lightly, otherwise they think their under attack and remain inside their shell" She was glad to finally know the answer but why did he tell her now? "You wouldn't have found the answer and I don't need you losing sleep over it" he said taking in her questioning glance "You're stupid enough as it is-" he said sneering at her "-and I don't need a stupider sleep deprived potions partner in the morning" She glared at him and his lips curled into half a smile. Why did he always have to be so horrible?

"Thanks for caring" she said sarcastically and started to walk up the stairs.

"You should say thank you, not thanks" he said coldly and she paused in anger. Stupid dark lord, who did he think he was acting all posh and perfect? He was a half-blood wizard raised in a muggle orphange and so poor that he couldn't even afford new clothes, but she knew she could never say it to his face because it would probably be the last thing she ever said.

"If you say so Mr perfect" she said climbing the stairs again. She was about to touch her metal door handle when it suddenly glowed red with heat. She drew her hand back with a gasp and the sound of approaching footsteps made her turn. Her heart jumped as her eyes fell on Tom Riddle walking up the stairs with his wand drawn. She hadn't meant to make him angry and he had obviously taken offence at what she had said, probably because it suggested he wasn't right.

She felt like drawing her own wand but there was a high chance he would disarm her before she could even touch it. Besides she was meant to tolerate him, not provoke him into a huge fight and risk getting injured. If only she had gotten into her room faster, then she would have been safe as the magic preventing boys would have stopped him from entering. She couldn't even run into her room, he'd cleverly taken care of that. He paused three steps away from her and even though she was on top of the stairs, being taller he easily towered over her. She knew he liked to maintain a certain distance and if he drew any closer it usually meant he was in a violent mood to grab her and throw her around like a rag doll. When he didn't step any closer she felt a bit better but she didn't allow herself to relax. With magic he could injure her in worse ways than he could physically and her heart drummed away fast as she waited for him to make a move.

"Don't mock me" he shouted making her jump. He jabbed his wand into her shoulder and she moaned in pain. He glared at her and she stared back at him fearfully. He suddenly waved his wand and she braced herself for a harmful spell but she didn't feel anything. He started to walk back down the stairs and relief washed through. She turned to find her door handle was back to normal again and he must have waved his wand to undo it. She quickly ran into her room.

"Stupid psycho" she muttered rubbing her hurt shoulder. She brushed her hair and changed into her nightclothes. She lay on her bed and feeling sleepless she stared into the darkness. It was one week into November and there was still plenty of time to kill him. So far it had been two failed attempts but hopefully the third one would be successful. She tried to think of a way to murder him and came up with nothing. In the end she fell asleep with a tear stained face as memories of her old life ran through her mind.

**Thanks for the reviews everyone. In case you're wondering why I updated earlier, my internet connection broke down and I couldn't do my coursework so I wrote up next 2 chapters of the story. The next chapters done but it isn't fit to be seen in public and needs serious editing so I'm not sure when I'll put it up. **

**I think someone said why Tom didn't notice her reaction when he touched her wings. He was behind her so he couldn't see her face and it's not like she was making any sounds. She didn't have the strength to move so there was no body movement to indicate she could feel anything and she managed to control herself from dropping to the floor. All she did was whisper to ask him what he was doing and he answered thinking she was probably wondering why he was taking so long to remove the wings. So you see there's no way he could have known she could feel his touch. **

**Someone else asked when Hermione and Tom are going to get together. Sorry to say it's not going to happen anytime soon and it's going to take a while. But you'll see the way their behaviour towards each other changes over time and the changes are going to be slow and gradual. I mean think about it people, Hermione hates Tom so much she wants to kill him and Tom doesn't let anyone get close to him. So there not going to fall in love overnight and it's going to take some time and a lot of other obstacles will have to be moved out the way. **

**I just watched Harry Potter the musical on you tube and it is really good. I think everyone should watch it and its been uploaded by StarKidPotter. **

**Please leave reviews. I read all of them, no matter how small or big and it motivates me to write. **


	24. Unanswered question

It was Saturday and Hermione woke around twelve. After lunch she went down to the library and scanned the section on defence against the dark arts. She was trying to come up with ideas to eliminate the dark lord but the books were useless and the Latin book she had read before was missing. She would have to sneak into the restricted section later and she was about to leave when a book at the end caught her eye. She pulled out the book and dusted it. A guide to 101 common dark spells, the faded title read. Coughing she opened the book and it was so interesting that she began to read it standing.

"Maya" Susan's voice made her jump and she looked up to find Susan approaching with her girls. Hermione quickly changed the books title to, how to take care of a Hippogriff. "What are you reading book queen?" Susan said pulling the book out of her hands.

"It's about Hippogriffs" Hermione said uncomfortably.

"Why on earth would you read about them?" Susan said with an expression of disbelief and handed the book back to her.

"I--I find them interesting" Hermione said plastering a fake smile on her face.

"You're weird" One of the girls said.

"Morgana leave her alone" Susan said giving the girl a look. "It's Saturday and guess what?" Susan said excitedly.

"What?"

"Its Hogsmeade weekend, come out with us" She instantly felt sad at Susan's words.

"I can't go" she said in a low voice.

"Why not?" Susan said looking disappointed.

"I don't have permission" she said looking at the floor. "My parents their---their dead"

"I'm so sorry Maya" Susan said giving her a brief hug.

"Its okay" she said holding back tears.

"Cheer up and think of the bright side. At least you won't be out in the cold-" Susan suddenly placed her mouth next to Hermione's ear.

"I don't want to know" she said attempting to pull away but Susan held onto her arms firmly.

"-and you can get cosy with your secret lover" Susan whispered. "He's not allowed to go to Hogsmeade either" Susan pulled away grinning.

"I don't have a secret---" Hermione started angrily.

"He's here right now" Susan interrupted excitedly and she thought Susan was joking until she noticed Tom walking towards her. Hermione dropped the book startled and the girls let out a chorus of laughter.

"Morning Tom" Kirsten said eyeing him up and down.

"Morning" Tom said politely and Kirsten stared at him dreamily. He held out a piece of parchment towards Hermione and she stared at it dumbly. "Granger, its next week's patrolling timetable" he said coldly.

"Oh" she said feeling stupid and quickly grabbed the parchment. She stuffed it into her bag and suddenly noticed Tom bending down to pick up her fallen book. "You don't have to" she said loudly but it was too late. The book had sprawled open when it had fallen and with his eyes glued to the page he stood up. Oh Merlin, this wasn't good.

"You should tell your friend not to waste time reading up on Hippogriffs" Haley said giggling.

"Hippogriffs" Tom said with a confused tone and he continued to run his eyes over the page. He suddenly snapped the book shut and raised an eyebrow as he read the title.

"Ignore her" Susan said ushering her group out of the library. "See you later Maya" For the first time in Hermione's life she wished Susan wouldn't leave and she stared at Tom uncomfortably. He couldn't figure out her real intentions from the book, could he? No, she was just being stupid and paranoid. The book showed she was into dark magic and he already knew that. Also the book wasn't from the restricted section and he couldn't get her in trouble for reading it. She should just take the book and leave.

"Give it back" Hermione said holding out her hand and he continued to stare at her unmoving. She suddenly noticed a look in his eyes that she had never seen before and it frightened her. "The book Riddle" she forced out "Give it to me" He suddenly looked down and started to search through the book. He paused at a page once in a while and skimmed through it then he resumed his searching. When he got to the end of the book he looked up.

"Don't you think it's strange Granger that a book on Hippogriffs doesn't mention them at all?" Tom's voice was mocking and he loudly snapped the book shut.

"Its not on Hippogriffs" she whispered looking back and forth.

"I thought so" he said taking out his wand. "Eureveliaro" he said tapping the cover and the original title became visible. He didn't appear surprised by the title and he suddenly smirked at her again. That weird look was back in his eyes and an uneasy feeling pooled in her stomach.

"Can I have it back now?" she said in a controlled voice and held up her hand once again.

"Why are you reading this?" he said commandingly and her hand immediately dropped to her side. She knew from his tone of voice he wasn't asking her to tell him, he was ordering her. Oh Merlin, he couldn't possibly suspect her of anything. Of course not, she was just being paranoid. He already knew she was interested in dark magic and she should use that as an excuse.

"Things like that fascinate me" she said in a false excited voice. "I don't like being held back on knowledge" Her fascination with the dark arts was a lie but the knowledge bit was true.

"What do you find so fascinating about the dark arts?" he said slowly and the passion she heard in his voice made her almost shudder. He continued to stare at her and she forced herself to speak.

"Sometimes it's satisfying to use when you want to take out your anger" she said uncomfortably. "The power and control it offers when you want to make your enemies suffer" she said thinking back to the times she had used unforgivables on death eaters. "White magic can protect and defend against the enemy but not punish them" she suddenly said in a louder voice. "Black magic is perfect for giving them what they deserve" she didn't realise but this time her voice was raw with hate. Hermione had no problem torturing evil people but like the death eaters she could never find pleasure in it, just satisfaction and a feeling that justice has been served. "But even on enemies-" she said in a lower voice "-I have never found it pleasurable to-" she abruptly paused realising that she was pouring her heart out to the dark lord.

"You don't enjoy it" he said softly and he slightly tilted his head to one side.

"No" she whispered thinking back to the time she had killed a death eater.

"You don't feel joy watching them suffer and beg for mercy" he said in a disbelieving tone.

"No"

"Even when they really deserve it" he said sounding irritated.

"I don't enjoy torturing people" she snapped and his blank face instantly changed to show anger.

"Then your weak Granger" he said coldly. "Because deep down you still feel sympathy for them"

"I am not weak Riddle" she hissed angrily. "And you're wrong" She said glaring at him "I have never felt sympathy or hesitated to hurt my enemies" Why was she talking to him? She wasn't even breaking any rules and she shouldn't have to explain anything. "Accio book" she suddenly said pointing her wand and he instantly blocked the spell with an expression of surprise.

She looked at him angrily and wondered if he could move at the speed of light. This wasn't the first time this had happened, twice before he had reacted faster than her and she wasn't sure if he was better than her or if she was losing her touch since she wasn't battling death eaters anymore. No, she refused to believe he was better than her at duelling. That night on the astronomy tower she had presumed he was defenceless and her guard had been down. She had forgotten the most important rule taught at battle and underestimated the enemy. When they were fighting in the common room she had tripped on something and that was just losing due to bad luck not skill. Then he had used physical force not magical and there was no way she could have won. The other times he was so fast at reacting that she didn't even get the chance to draw her wand and now that she thought of it, she had never actually properly duelled with him. She was sure that if she managed to draw her wand in time and if bad luck didn't make her trip on something then she had enough skill to defeat him or at least put up a good fight. But she had no desire to duel with the dark lord and foolishly risk getting killed. She would rather play submissive and unsuspectingly work towards murdering him.

"My level of awareness isn't rubbish like yours" he said sneering at her and she wanted to say something back but there was nothing to say since he was right. "You must always remain alert" he said holding the book towards her. "You can never know when your enemies might strike" She was suddenly reminded of the way Moody had kept on saying constant vigilance. She knew that while she was very good at duelling, being watchful and on guard all the time had never been one of her strengths. Harry had constantly pointed out the weakness and told her numerous times, there was no point being powerful if you couldn't draw your wand in time. She had greatly improved since then but her awareness level still wasn't good enough against people with extraordinary senses. Glaring at him she snatched the book and stuffed it into her bag. Tom stared at her for a while and she unconsciously take a step back. He suddenly turned and wordlessly walked to the back of the library.

Hermione paced her room deep in thought. Tom had seen her with the book and it wouldn't be wise to use it because if she failed he would know she had been behind it. She needed to sneak into the restricted section for ideas and she couldn't do that until late at night. She decided to spend the rest of her morning doing homework and reading important textbooks. At lunchtime she was starving. She rushed down to the great hall and sat next to Susan.

"How was your trip?" She asked Susan.

"Good" Susan said excitedly. "Guess what I brought?"

"What?"

"No you're meant to guess" Hermione rolled her eyes and spooned some tuna pasta onto her plate. She had a few ideas but she wasn't sure.

"Erm--I don't know" Hermione said bringing a spoonful of creamy pasta close to her mouth.

"Enchanting eye shadow" Susan said smiling widely.

"Enchanting what?" she said with her mouthful and Susan's smile fell.

"Don't tell me you don't know what enchanting eye shadow is" Susan said with a look of disbelief. She had never heard Parvati or Lavender talk of such an item and it had to be a 1940's thing. She nodded her head to say no and carried on eating. "Merlin Maya, how can you not know?"

"I just don't"

"Don't worry, I'll tell you" Susan's smile was back on again. "The eye shadow changes to the favourite colour of the person looking at you"

"I see" she said in an uninterested voice. That was all it did and Susan was acting like it was something big.

"You don't find what it can do impressive, how can you not?" Hermione just shrugged her shoulders and carried on eating. "Hey, do you want to try some?" Susan said digging into her bag.

"No thanks"

"Oh come on" Susan said in a high pitched voice. "Tom will love it" the spoon dropped out of her hand and noisily landed on the plate.

"He doesn't mean anything to me" she said glaring daggers at Susan. "Leave me alone" Her eyes slowly wandered towards the Slytherin table and landed on Tom. He wasn't staring at her like he usually did and he wasn't reading either. Instead he was staring at Malfoy and his group with a blank expression and they were huddling together with expression of fear on their faces. Looks like the dark lord wasn't too happy with them.

"Maya" Susan said making her look away. "I didn't mean to upset you"

"Its okay" She was used to the girl's comments now.

"Are you doing anything this afternoon?"

"Nothing really"

"Me and my girls are having a little get together, can you come?" All her homework was finished and she couldn't go to the restricted section until night so she didn't see the harm in killing some time.

"Okay"

"Yay" Susan said hugging her. "Come down at four"

Hermione entered the heads common room and she was about to go to her room when something lying on the table caught her eyes. It was a large book and the front cover was peeling. She could smell the faint damp odour that old books gave of and she walked closer feeling curious. The books title read, Possible further uses of dragon's blood. The Incomplete theories of the great alchemist Albertus Magnus. She continued to stare at the book and her mouth hung open in disbelief. It was a very rare book and only two known copies existed. Albertus Magnus had been working on inventing further uses of dragon's blood but he died before he finished. The book contained his theories and unfinished workings but no witch or wizard had been able to finish his work. In her time she had come across the book being referenced in many sources and she had always wanted to read it. A rush of excitement went through her and she bent down to reach the book. The book suddenly flew out of her reach and she drew back startled.

"Don't touch my book Granger" Tom's voice sounded behind her. She turned to find him standing near the stairs holding a roll of parchment in one hand and with his other hand he pointed his wand at her. She had been so absorbed in the book she hadn't even noticed his presence and feeling disappointed she forced herself to move away. He summoned the book and protectively wrapped an arm around it. He glared at her and she seriously considered shouting the killing curse just to get her hands on the book.

"You shouldn't leave it lying around" She said glaring back at him. "It's not like it has your name on it"

"Actually it does" he said holding up the book and walking closer. "There" he said pointing at the bottom of the cover. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she noticed the small label on the left hand side reading, Property of T.M Riddle. Well, she had been so intrigued by the books title that she had overlooked the very small label at the bottom. The book was hard to obtain and obviously very expensive so how the hell did someone poor like Tom afford it? He couldn't even buy new clothes so where did he get the money from?

"I didn't notice" She said uncomfortably. "The labels too small"

"It's not small" he said wrapping his arm around the book again. "You're just too blind to notice it" he said sneering at her. She glared at him angrily and she felt like saying something back but she forced herself not to. According to her rules she wasn't supposed to make him angry and violent. She was meant to lie low and get the job done, not get seriously injured or have the dark lord take an interest in her duelling skills. He sat down in his armchair and started to read the book.

"The book Riddle, how did you-" she wanted to say afford but she knew he wouldn't take it too well. "-how did you come across it" He snapped his head up from the book and stared at her for a while.

"You mean how I afforded it?" he said angrily.

"No, no I meant come across" she said hurriedly and his angry expression went blank. "I mean it is a rare book to come by and well I was just wondering but you don't have to tell me if you don't want to"

"I don't want to tell you" he said bluntly and he went back to reading the book. She knew it was her cue to leave but she really wanted to read the book. He probably wouldn't let her but it was worth a try.

"Erm-Riddle"

"Leave me alone Granger" he snapped with his eyes still glued to the book. Yeah, that was definitely a no. He would never let her borrow the book and if she actually said the word borrow he would probably get mad at her or something. She walked up the stairs to her room and pictured herself standing over his corpse with the book in her hands. After she killed him she was going to get her hands on that book and feeling determined to kill him more than ever she entered her room. Hermione sat on her bed reading a huge textbook. At four she snapped the book shut and straightened her aching spine. She left the heads quarters and walked towards the Ravenclaw dorm. She entered the dorm to find all the girls sitting in a circle near the fireplace and various snacks were placed in the centre.

"Hey Maya, come here" Susan said moving to make space for her and Hermione sat down feeling out of place. She felt like she was intruding in their group but after a while the feeling dissolved as the other girls treated her nicely. Susan showed of her pot of enchanting eye shadow and demonstrated it. It was amazing to hear each girl stating a different colour and Hermione saw it as her favourite colour ocean blue.

"Hey Susan, got anything new" Morgana suddenly asked and all the girls sat up straighter and looked at Susan expectantly.

"Yes, I have something that's going to blow your brains out" Susan said excitedly crawling towards her bed. She removed her trunk from under the bed and brought out a book. "Fresh out of print" She said sitting back down and Hermione groaned when she saw the title. Oh Merlin, not another witch romance story. "This is from the forbidden passions series" Susan said holding up the book. "This one girl gets it on with two guys at the same time"

"Same time" Haley whispered.

"That's right" Susan said flipping through the pages. "Okay this is the best bit" she said pausing at a page. "Ready everyone"

"Just read the damn thing" Stacey said.

"Someone's desperate, okay here goes" All the girls listened spellbound with dreamy eyes while Hermione started to recite the twelve uses of dragon's blood in her mind. After some time she walked down the corridor and felt glad to have left the Ravenclaw dorm. She entered her room and flopped on the bed. A tapping noise made her look up and she noticed an owl outside her window. She took the letter and tore open the envelope. It was a letter from Slughorn inviting her to a slug club meeting at 7 pm tomorrow and she put the letter away with a sigh.

At night Hermione stared at her clock and she decided to wait 5 more minutes before making her way down to the restricted section. When the time was up she put on a hooded cloak and quietly opened the door. No one was there and she quickly sneaked out. Hades and Persephone were sleeping peacefully in their portrait and she was grateful they weren't awake. Hermione walked down the corridor in the dark and she didn't dare light her wand since it would be too much of a giveaway. One more floor and she would be inside the library. Cold high pitched laughter suddenly rang out and she froze in her tracks. She knew very well who the laughter belonged to and she instantly pulled out her wand. With her heart beating wildly she searched the surroundings but she couldn't find Tom Riddle lurking in the shadows. She jumped as she heard it again and it sounded close to her left. She turned and stared at a closed classroom door. The laughter had to have come from inside the classroom and she stepped closer to the door. Her mind screamed at her to run but she was curious to know what the dark lord was up to and with her heart racing she pressed her ear against the door.

"Did you really think you would get away with it" she heard Tom's voice. She suddenly noticed a stream of light coming from the key hole and she bent down to peer through it. Hermione could make out Abraxas Malfoy and his boys dressed in their nightclothes. Tom was pointing his wand at them and they were all huddled in a corner with expressions of fear. "You think you can insult me and not get punished" Tom shouted making all the boys shake and even Hermione felt frightened at the coldness in his voice.

"Malfoy, I don't understand" Crabbe suddenly said in a tearful voice. "Why did we all walk in here?"

"Shut up Crabbe" Malfoy hissed. "This is not the time for your stupidity" Tom suddenly pointed his wand at Crabbe and smirked at him sinisterly.

"I'll enlighten you" Tom said jabbing his wand into Crabbe's forehead and Crabbe let out a frightened cry. "Do you know what an imperius curse is?" Crabbe stared at Tom fearfully and started to cry.

"Answer me" Tom shouted kicking him and Crabbe cried out.

"No" Crabbe said shakily and grabbed Goyle for support.

"The imperius curse can be used to control a person's mind-" Tom said tracing his wand across Crabbe's face. "-and I imperiused all of your weak minds to follow me into this room" He suddenly jabbed the wand into Crabbe's cheek and Crabbe clutched it with a scream. Tom stepped back laughing and eyed the group with a predatory look. It frightened her to know that Tom was capable of controlling five minds and at the same time she was impressed by his ability. It took great effort to control a person's mind and she had found it really hard when she had tried in the past. She had no idea how he managed to control five minds when she could barely handle one.

Malfoy suddenly placed a hand in his pocket and after a few seconds he removed his hand with a troubled expression. "Lost something Malfoy?" Tom said smirking at him "Surely any of you didn't think I'd let you bring your wands" he said running his eyes over the group and they all huddled together even closer. Tom muttered a spell and made ropes appear around their bodies. They struggled against their bonds looking terrified and he stared at them with an amused expression. "I don't think any of you learnt your lesson last time" he suddenly shouted and they all froze. He made Malfoy's ropes vanish and grabbed him by the hair. Malfoy screamed in fright and Tom repeatedly smashed his head against a wall. Malfoy struggled and blood started to pour from his nose. He dragged Malfoy into the centre of the room and threw him onto the floor.

"Riddle I'm sorry" Malfoy pleaded trying to crawl away. Tom dragged him back and kicked him in the ribs. Malfoy cried out and clutched his chest.

"Did you think your behaviour at the Halloween ball would go unpunished?" Tom shouted kicking him again.

"I'm sorry" Malfoy shouted with tears streaming down his face.

"I don't forgive and I don't forget" he shouted grabbing a fistful of Malfoy's hair "You will do well to remember it" he hissed violently tugging on the blonde strands and Malfoy screamed. He suddenly cast a silencing spell on Malfoy and traced his wand across Malfoy's lips. "I think I recall you inviting me to be your guest when I said I would cut your tongue out" Tom said coldly and continued to skim his wand over Malfoy's lips. Malfoy's eyes widened and intense fear pooled in Hermione's stomach. He wasn't going to seriously cut out Malfoy's tongue, was he? "I think I'm going to take you up on that offer Malfoy" he said pausing his wand. Malfoy desperately struggled and his group started to whisper frantically. Knowing that he was actually going to do it made her feel scared but she couldn't find the strength to look away.

Malfoy placed his hands over his mouth with a terrified expression and Tom laughed. "You don't have to be willing at all Malfoy" he said pointing his wand. "The imperius curse can fix that" he flicked his wand and Malfoy's hands instantly dropped to his sides. Malfoy slowly opened his mouth and stuck his tongue out. "That wasn't too hard, was it Malfoy?" Tom said in a soothing voice and Malfoy had a horrified expression on his face. "Shall I cut it vertically or horizontally?" Tom said staring at the tongue. "What do you think Goyle?" he suddenly asked and turned to look at the chubby boy and Goyle stared back with a fearful expression. "Answer me" Tom shouted. "Or I'll sew your lips together"

"Horizontally" Goyle said shakily.

"Yes, I was thinking that would be better" Tom said calmly. He positioned his wand over Malfoy's tongue and Malfoy whimpered in fear but he couldn't move. "Scindo linguatum" Tom said slowly and moved his wand horizontally. Blood welled up on Malfoy's tongue and a piece of pink flesh suddenly fell to the floor. Everyone screamed and Tom laughed. Hermione clamped a hand over her mouth and her heart started to violently beat against her ribcage. Malfoy was crawling on his hands and knees with tears streaming down his face and blood was pouring out of his mouth. If there wasn't a silencing spell on him she was sure Malfoy would have been screaming loudly. Hermione felt sick watching Malfoy's bleeding form and Tom continued to watch with a smile. There was a look of pleasure in his eyes and she couldn't understand how he could feel such joy in causing pain. Chills went down her spine as she continued to watch his sinister smiling expression and Malfoy suddenly dropped to the floor. Malfoy's boys let out frightened cries and Tom silenced them with a shout.

He levitated Malfoy's shaking form high into the air and blood continued to dribble from his mouth. Tom levitated Malfoy's severed tongue up into the air and Hermione suddenly felt jealous of his ability to levitate multiple things. He muttered a spell and repaired Malfoy's tongue. He flicked his wand and Malfoy crashed to the floor. "Crucio" Tom shouted. Malfoy violently shook on the floor and his mouth moved but his screams were blocked by the silencing spell. Hermione paled as she continued to watch the torture and she knew Malfoy would have preferred his tongue to be repeatedly cut out than to be crucioed. There was nothing worse to torture someone with other than the cruciatus curse, the pain it caused you made you wish for death and the pain from the after lasted for weeks. Tom kept his wand trained on Malfoy with an expression of hatred and Malfoy suddenly passed out. Tom muttered a spell and revived him. He carried on crucioing Malfoy and a wicked smile suddenly formed on his lips. Hermione could almost make out the smile and she felt goose bumps form on her skin. He was clearly enjoying the pain and the way he was revelling in it frightened her.

Tom suddenly levitated Malfoy and threw him into a corner. He levitated Lestrange into the centre and made his ropes vanish. Lestrange pleaded and Tom silenced him with a spell. He started to torture Lestrange with the cruciatus curse and the smile was back on his lips. Avery was tortured next and he finished by throwing him into a wall. He levitated Goyle into the centre and made his ropes vanish. Goyle curled into a ball and lay on the floor sobbing loudly. Tom crucioed him but only for a couple of seconds and Hermione noticed the smile was missing from his lips. He levitated Crabbe into the centre and the same thing happened. With a spell he cleared away blood stains from the room and rearranged some of the furniture. "If any of you ever disrespect me again, you'll be very sorry" Tom shouted and he started to walk towards the door. Hermione suddenly realised he was about to open the door and she quickly ran into the next corridor. With her heart racing she leaned against the wall and heard his footsteps fade away.

When she couldn't hear anything she started to walk again and all of a sudden she didn't feel like going to the restricted section anymore. She felt scared and she wanted to be inside the safety of her bedroom. It had been months since she had seen anyone being tortured but that wasn't what was bothering her. When Bellatrix Lestrange tortured someone she had seen an expression of joy on her face but it was never continuous and Tom Riddle had managed to maintain an expression of hate and pleasure throughout the entire torture. His eyes had been filled with hatred and the sinister smile had showed his enjoyment. She couldn't understand how anyone could feel such happiness by hurting someone but he was the dark lord and he was meant to be evil to the core.

Something else was also bothering her. He had behaved differently with Crabbe and Goyle and it was like he had shown sympathy to them but that couldn't be right. The dark lord didn't show compassion and mercy so maybe he had gotten tired or bored of torturing but that didn't sound right either. It was really late at night and maybe he had wanted to leave earlier. Crabbe and Goyle had been really scared out of their minds and he must have thought a few seconds was equal to the amount he had spent on the others. That sounded right but she suddenly thought of something else.

Was Malfoy and his group Tom's death eaters in training or not? What she had seen today could be interpreted in two ways and that question was still left unanswered. Tom was either punishing his death eaters for rebelling against him or he was just punishing a gang of bullies for insulting him. She was sure now that Malfoy wasn't friends with him and Dumbledore had said Tom never desired friendship but she had thought he might have been pretending just to use Malfoy. If the gang bullied him then she could understand why Tom reacted badly at being told he was friends with Malfoy but if they were his death eaters, he must view Malfoy as someone beneath him and saying they were friends probably angered him because it gave them an equal status in his eyes.

She had been here for so many weeks and all she had was theories. She didn't have a definite answer but she decided to stick with the death eater theory. Dumbledore believed Tom had formed his death eater circle at school and Dumbledore couldn't be wrong. The times when Tom had hurt her she had thought he was being cruel but compared to Malfoy it seemed like he had shown kindness to her. Now that she thought of it, he had never attempted to crucio her and there had been lots of opportunities to do so. She didn't know why he hadn't crucioed her but maybe she hadn't angered him enough like Malfoy. She was glad she had made the decision to tolerate him after their fight in the common room, otherwise who knew what shape she would have been in.

Hermione knew she should be working on a way to eliminate Voldemort but she felt shaken after what she had seen. All the memories of her parents being murdered had resurfaced in her mind and she was too emotional right now. She knew if she went down to the restricted section she wouldn't be able to read anything and it was better to go to sleep. She had already wasted almost two months and one more day wasted wasn't going to make much of a difference.

"Persephone" Hermione whispered standing in front of the portrait but the woman continued to snore. "Hades" she said turning towards the man but he continued to sleep as well. "Persephone" she whispered tapping the painting with her finger and the woman jumped awake. Her husband woke shortly afterwards.

"What in the name of Merlin---" Persephone said looking around wildly.

"Sorry, can you let me in?" Hermione whispered and Persephone and Hades looked down at Hermione's cloaked figure with expressions of surprise.

"Oh, its you dear" Persephone said smiling at her warmly. "It's strange that you should enter at this hour shortly after Mr Riddle"

"We weren't together" she whispered with a worried expression. "Now let me in"

"Of course, Password"

"Medusa" the door clicked open.

"We might have two late night wanderers" she heard Persephone say as she quietly tiptoed inside.

"Unless the next stage has begun" she heard Hades say as she shut the door. What the hell were they talking about? She shouldn't really care what a portrait was saying and like everyone else they were probably thinking there was something going on between her and Tom. Why didn't people ever notice the hate or the forced to work together part? She was relieved to find the common room empty and she hurried up to her room.

She changed into her nightclothes and crawled into bed. She couldn't help it as suddenly burst into tears and she pressed her face into her pillow. She felt bad for being so weak and full of emotions. She should have been in the restricted section, not crying her eyes out and thinking about her parents. She promised herself she would kill Voldemort as soon as possible and she eventually fell asleep but she didn't rest peacefully. She had nightmares of Voldemort murdering her parents with the same kind of sickening smile she had seen on Tom's lips and this was followed by the echoes of his cold high pitched laughter as their bodies fell to the floor. Hermione cried in her sleep and clutched her quilt tightly as the dream continued to haunt her.

**I just got back from an exam and read the reviews. I am not happy about the things people are saying about my Hermione and I'm going to clear a lot of things up. **

**My Hermione is not stupid, weak, cowardly, pathetic or defenceless. She's pretending to be defenceless and letting Tom think he's in control. I repeat, she's pretending to be defenceless.**

**Did everyone miss the scene in the girls' toilets where she decided to tolerate him and let him have his way? Not to mention the countless other times I've mentioned where she wasn't fighting him on purpose. Her actions of not fighting back are deliberate, she's perfectly capable of fighting him but she doesn't want to. **

**Because if she did, she would risk injuring herself and he would get interested in how she learnt to fight like that. She doesn't want him investigating her past and she had a hard time getting rid of him when he questioned her about getting through the Hogwarts barriers. He also noticed she blocked Dumbledore but he dismissed it thinking Dumbledore hadn't been using his full ability.**

**She doesn't want him to know about her real duelling skills and if you remember during their fight in the common room she tripped on furniture otherwise she wouldn't have easily lost. The other times she was too slow at drawing her wand, he disarmed her or she didn't draw her wand on purpose. So you see, she couldn't have fought back without her wand and you can also see that she has never actually duelled with him. **

**Did everyone fail to notice that she doesn't let Malfoy and everyone else push her around? If she was actually a coward, do you think she would have stood up to them? It's only with Tom that she doesn't fight back and that's because she's letting him get away with it. **

**I think what people are finding hard to deal with is that she's not acting like a typical Gryffindor. She not acting rashly to prove herself she's brave. Instead she's trying to show Tom that she's not a threat and that way he won't harm her and she can easily kill him off without him ever suspecting her. **

**Nearly in every Tom and Hermione fanfic I've read, Hermione is always fighting Tom back and then he gets interested in her and starts investigating her past or sees her as a threat. I wanted to do something different than the usual plot line so I'm writing a Hermione that's pretending to be less of a threat to avoid all that troubles while she works on her main goal, which is to kill Tom. **

**Personally, I don't think two people can ever come together if their always fighting and getting violent. Tom doesn't like people that are a threat to him and he always likes to be in control. If you read the story carefully, you would have noticed that he started to tell her things about spells and potions after she stopped fighting back for a couple of weeks. So you see the small difference, before he never used to tell her anything and now he tells her a few things in lessons. **

**Another thing, I think people are finding it hard to deal with a Hermione that is less intelligent than Tom. My Hermione isn't dumb but Tom Riddle is just a little bit more intelligent than her. Tom Riddle has the sort of intelligence that Dumbledore had when he was young and Hermione cannot match that but after him she is the next intelligent student at Hogwarts. His intelligence and knowledge is what fascinates Hermione. You would have noticed in the story that she looks forward to him telling her things in lessons and she remains quiet just to learn more. So you see, Hermione's submissive behaviour and his willingness to impart some of his knowledge is a small but crucial change. **

**Someone said Hermione is afraid of Tom – Okay, I know she's been through war but that doesn't mean she's going to lose her fear and become 100% fearless. Hermione is a human being with feelings and she's allowed to feel fear even if she has been through war. Just because someone tried to kill her last time doesn't mean she will feel any less afraid when someone tries to do it again. It might make her a stronger person and give her the courage to fight back but that doesn't mean she won't feel afraid. Her feeling fear doesn't make her weak, it just makes her human with feelings. **

**Tom can do a lot of hurtful things that frighten her and I think she should be allowed to feel fear, despite having been through war. Like I said it won't make you become immune to fear if you've faced a similar situation before but it might make you feel a little braver. I know some people become fearless after war but it's important to remember that war affects everyone differently. Some people become braver while others become so afraid that they can't step out of their own house. Hermione didn't become completely fearless or too afraid, her fear level is pretty normal for the average human being. **

**But the war and the death of her loved ones have affected her. As you can see, my Hermione is not afraid of using dark arts and she thinks it's justified when used on evil people. She will even go as far as murder but she isn't 100% evil and she doesn't like to hurt those that are good and innocent. I think someone said Hermione would rather die than murder a house elf. You have to understand that the house elf's death was accidental, she didn't intentionally kill it and she did feel guilty afterwards. I know some people are saying Hermione would never turn dark but I think it's possible after what she's been through. **

**An anonymous reviewer said Hermione was unable to make simple wings – if they read the story carefully instead of skimming, they would know that Hermione didn't attempt to make the wings. Susan made them for her and Hermione didn't bother to make magical ones because she didn't think it was a big deal. She regrets not making the magical ones when Tom loses his temper after seeing her paper wings. She is perfectly capable of making magical wings but the ones Tom made was above the average magical wings. **

**Now, about why Hermione didn't realise Tom was stroking the creature differently - She read in the book you had to stroke it and so she believes the books information. She also knows that Tom hates touching living things and so she viewed his light touching as his disgust to touch the creature. She didn't know he was doing it to make it come out, she simply though he disliked touching it so you can see why she couldn't tell. **

**I hope all my readers understand that she's pretending to be defenceless and that her decisions not to fight back Tom are deliberate. If I get one more review saying my Hermione's a coward, weak, pathetic or stupid, then I'm seriously going to cry. I thought everyone knew that was doing it on purpose. **

**M.H**** Bay**** – thank you for your lovely reviews. I am aware of the age thing and Dippet decided to put her in seventh year since she was a week or 2 away from being 17 in September, besides she was in seventh year in her time so she's not doing seventh year at a younger age. I have read Twilight and I would r****ecommend L.J smith's vampire diaries. It's a vey good read and CW are making it into a TV show after all the Twilight hype. It's gonna air on sept 10th and the trailers on you tube. check it out. **

**Now I have to get back and revise for my exams. My next update will probably be in the 1st or 2nd week of July. Please leave reviews, I look forward to them. **


	25. Quidditch

Hermione opened her eyes on a Sunday morning and glanced at the clock. It was 7am and it was way too early but she couldn't go back to sleep. She went down to the great hall and it was almost empty. She sat down and chewing on a toast she looked towards the Slytherin table. Tom was the only person there and he was reading a book and eating at the same time. Since he was up at this time on a Sunday she figured he must always wake up early. Sipping some orange juice she continued to stare at him and he suddenly looked at her. She immediately looked down coughing and she had a feeling he was still staring at her but she didn't dare look up.

She spent most of the day reading in the library and she left at lunchtime. She walked down the corridor and from a distance she could make out two boys. From their sizes they seemed like first years and after a few more steps she could hear what they were saying.

"I can conjure large objects" one of the boys said. "And they last for about five minutes"

"Liar" the other boy said. "Last time you said you could levitate books"

"I'm not lying this time"

"Then prove it"

"Fine" the boy said drawing his wand. "What should I conjure?"

"I don't know" the other boy said shrugging his shoulders. "Erm--I could use a mirror though, got a feeling my hairs out of place"

"Watch me" the boy pointed his wand high up. "Ebullio speculum" the boy said waving his wand in circles and a large floating mirror appeared. Hermione stared at the back of the hovering mirror and raised her eyebrows, for a first year that was pretty impressive.

"Wow" the other boy said looking up at the mirror. "It's too high up though, can't see my face" Tom Riddle suddenly appeared and being tall the mirror directly met his gaze. He abruptly stopped walking and his blank face changed to a terrified expression. He ran forward and forcefully punched the mirror making the glass shatter into pieces. Hermione stopped moving and the first years drew back looking frightened. His hand started to badly bleed but he didn't seem to be aware. He looked at the boys with a furious expression and he grabbed one of them by the collar. The boy let out a frightened scream while the other boy ran off.

"You do not conjure mirrors in the corridor" Tom shouted shaking the boy and the boy burst into tears. "Get lost you stupid child" he shouted throwing the boy into a wall and the boy ran away sobbing. Blood continued to drip from his hand but he still didn't acknowledge it. He drew back with a fearful expression and waving his wand he made the glass shards vanish. He suddenly broke into a run and Hermione watched from the other end of the corridor with an expression of disbelief. She had expected him to shout at her or to threaten her and she couldn't believe he hadn't noticed her presence. He must have been really distracted from the mirror incident if his senses of perception had been that bad. She slowly walked forward and paused at the blood splatters. The injury hadn't bothered him and being the monster he was he probably didn't feel pain like everyone else. She had seen fear written all over his face and his need to remove the mirror had been so urgent that he had smashed it with his hand when he could have used magic. Why was Tom Riddle so scared of looking in the mirror? People did say that the mirror reflects your soul and maybe the dark lord was frightened of his own soul. When he looked into the mirror he probably saw the evil inside him or if he had succeeded in making a Horcrux he probably saw the way his soul was broken and maybe the emptiness frightened him. But all those explanations were just theories and there had to be some other reason.

She entered the great hall and sat down. She looked towards the Slytherin table and Tom wasn't there. Susan started talking to her and pretending to listen she started to eat. Once in a while she glanced towards the Slytherin table and Tom never showed up for lunch. He was obviously upset after seeing his own reflection and she continued to wonder why. His physical appearance wasn't ugly so what was the problem? She had always thought guys like him would love to stare into the mirror for hours but then again the dark lord always seemed to be an exception when it came to normal behaviour.

She went back to the library and when it became dark she left with a huge pile of books. She entered the heads common room and started to walk towards the stairs. One of the books slid of and landed on the floor with a thud.

"Oh crap" Hermione muttered pausing. The book suddenly flew up and settled onto the top again. "What in the name of Merlin?" she said staring at the book in disbelief.

"Don't get too excited Granger" she heard a voice say behind her and she turned to find Tom standing near the door pointing his wand. "It's something called magic which you obviously don't know how to use" he said glaring at her and she noticed his hand was healed. "Why are you carrying those like a common muggle?" he suddenly shouted.

"You're Mr Perfect and you can levitate a hundred things but that doesn't mean everyone else can" she shouted back and she immediately regretted it. She shouldn't have said that and she definitely shouldn't have shouted at him. Oh God, he looked angry.

"Don't shout at me" he hissed flicking his wand and all the books flew out of her hands. They nosily crashed to the floor and her pulse quickened in fear. Her hand itched to draw her wand but she forced herself not to. This was all her fault. She shouldn't have made him angry but sometimes her real self took over and she forgot to play the submissive weak girl. In two quick strides he was in front of her and he pressed his wand into her neck. Fearing the worst she held her breath and he stared at her for a while. His angry expression suddenly dissolved and he lowered his wand. She released the breath she had been holding and looked at him with a confused expression. He let out a cold high pitched laughter and she jumped. He looked down at the floor and laughed again. This was totally unexpected. His weird behaviour was scaring her and she took a step back.

"Mr Perfect" he said softly. "True perfection, I doubt it exists" Hermione wondered why he was so calm when he should be angry. Maybe looking in the mirror had made him go soft in the head. "Things may not be as they always appear" he said slowly looking up and his eyes were unfocused. "Look from a distance and it's a perfect vase" he said lowering his voice. "Come closer and cracks can be seen" he finished in a whisper. He was creeping her out and she really didn't understand what he was trying to prove. Was he saying that he wasn't perfect? But the dark lord would never admit to any weaknesses so that couldn't be it.

"Not if the cracks are covered well" she said hesitantly. "True perfection might not exist but an illusion of perfection does" she said knowing that he was a monster in disguise.

"You would know all about that wouldn't you Granger" he said slightly tilting his head to one side. "After all, you always pretend to be perfect when your clearly not" she suddenly felt scared that he had found out something about her but then she realised he was referring at her attempts to outshine him in class.

"I've never said I was perfect" she said glaring at him. "But you think your perfect don't you Riddle"

"You're the one that said I was Mr Perfect" he said folding his arms and his lips curled into half a smile. Crap, he definitely had her cornered in their battle of words.

"I wasn't referring to you" she said knowing it sounded lame but she refused to admit it.

"Really" he said raising an eyebrow. "How many people in class do you know that can levitate more than one thing?" he stared at her waiting for an answer and Hermione knew she had lost.

"I-well-erm -it doesn't matter" she said breaking eye contact. All her books suddenly flew up and neatly landed in front of her door.

"Point proven" he said lowering his wand with a smug look. Stupid show off, she thought as she climbed up the stairs to her room.

"You didn't say thank you Granger" he called out and she paused.

"I didn't ask you to levitate them for me" she said turning to face him.

"I see" he hissed and one of his hands clenched into a fist. Okay this wasn't good. She had made him angry and would it have killed her to say thank you. She was about to say it when he waved his wand and all her books flew down to the common room door.

"Riddle" she hissed in frustration.

"Help yourself" he said coldly and he sat down in his green armchair. Hermione walked back down and picked up the books. She slowly climbed up the stairs and just when she was about to enter her room the books flew out of her hands. She turned to find the books near the common room door again and Tom Riddle was smiling at her icily.

"Why did you do that?" she said glaring at him.

"I felt like it" he said leaning back and crossing his legs. She stamped down the stairs feeling angry. She really wanted to draw her wand and hex him into oblivion. She picked up the books again but this time she leaned the pile against her side and tightly held onto them with her left hand. She pointed her wand with her right hand and keeping an eye on Tom she carefully started to walk backwards. He stared at her with an amused expression and she wobbled badly when she tried to climb the stairs backwards.

"Careful Granger, you might fall" he said smirking at her.

"I'm not going to fall" she said steadying herself.

"Turn around and walk properly"

"So you can levitate my books away" she managed to walk up one step safely. "I don't think so"

"I won't"

"I'm not falling for that" she climbed up one more step.

"Suit yourself" he continued to watch her and she almost fell climbing up the next step. "If you fall there's a good chance you might crack your skull open"

"Shut up Riddle" As if this wasn't hard enough without his comments.

"Or you might permanently damage your backbone" he said placing his hands behind his head.

"Stop talking" she hissed and she carefully climbed up one more step. In the end she made it to the top and entered her room. She dumped the books on the bed and rubbed her aching back. This was all his fault, if he hadn't interfered she wouldn't have carried the books up so many times. She visualised herself banging Tom's head against a wall so that his skull cracked open and smiling she put the books away. If only something like that was possible but murdering him was proving to be much more difficult.

At 7 pm it was time to go down and join the Slug club. She really didn't want to go and she was only going because Tom was going to be there. He probably didn't even know she was in the club and that was all the more reason to go down and annoy him. Fixing her hair as best as possible she rushed out the door and soon she was in front of Slughorn's room. She pushed the door open and a big round table surrounded by lots of people meet her eyes. Various kinds of snacks and drinks were laid in the middle of the table and Slughorn was sitting next to an expensively dressed muscular looking man.

"O ho" Slughorn said loudly. "If it isn't Maya Granger, the best witch in the seventh year" All eyes suddenly turned to her and Tom looked at her questioningly. "Come sit here my girl" Slughorn said pointing at an empty seat and Tom stared at her with an expression of disbelief. She sat down and his expression became neutral in seconds. Slughorn introduced his guest as Jack Allen and everyone on the table seemed to recognise the man but Hermione was clueless as to who he was. Slughorn started going on about how Jack was a quidditch champion and she mentally groaned. She hated quidditch but Harry and Ron had been mad about it. She had tried to read books on it so she could share their passion but it had never really worked. Jack started talking about all the quidditch matches he had won and after a while he started to explain a new technique he had invented. Everyone was listening eagerly but Hermione was bored out of her mind.

She looked around the table and her eyes stopped at Tom in disbelief. He was examining his fingernails with a bored expression and since he always paid attention it was a strange sight to see. The history of magic class had never bored him but talk of quidditch did. Looks like the dark lord wasn't into quidditch either and come to think of it, back in her time she had never seen any quidditch trophies with his name. Also Dumbledore or Harry had never mentioned him play quidditch and that meant Tom wasn't on the Slytherin quidditch team. Hermione found it odd that he didn't play. Why would he miss the chance to show of and win more awards for his house? Maybe he really disliked the sport or he thought it wasn't worth his time. It was strange though since all boys loved quidditch but then again the dark lord wasn't an ordinary boy. "Tom my boy" Slughorn suddenly said in a loud voice and Tom looked up sharply. "What do you of think of this new technique?" He looked troubled for a second but his expression become neutral in the blink of an eye.

"I'm sorry sir" he said carefully making his expression look apologetic. "I don't follow quidditch" So she had been right, he really didn't play quidditch. Slughorn stared at him open mouthed for a couple of seconds before flashing him a forced smile. "That's okay my boy" Slughorn said patting him on the back. He slowly shrank away from Slughorn's reach with an expression of dislike and no one seemed realise this except Hermione. Slughorn was a pureblood so why did he have a problem with him? Looks like she had been right last time, the dark lord disliked any human contact and it wasn't surprising. Dumbledore had said he only loved himself and he probably thought he was so superior to all the other human beings that anyone else touching him was an offence. "Peter your uncle is a professional player" Slughorn said placing the spotlight on a second year Hufflepuff. "What do you think of this new technique?"

Soon the discussion took a different turn and Jack started going on about all the accidents that had happened during his matches. It triggered her memory of the time Harry's broom stick had tried to throw him off and an idea suddenly hit her. She pictured a cursed broom stick throwing off Tom and him falling to his death. It would look like an accident and even if they discovered the broom had been cursed, there was no way they could connect it to her. It was a brilliant idea but the problem was he didn't play quidditch. How the hell was she supposed to get him to join the Slytherin quidditch team? She couldn't just walk up to him and say, excuse me Riddle can you join the Slytherin quidditch team so I can carry out my master plan to kill you. It was totally hopeless, she would have to abandon the idea and think of something else. At the end everyone rushed to get Jack Allen's autograph but Hermione wasn't interested. She and Tom were the only two persons walking towards the door while everyone crowded around Jack.

"Shouldn't you be down their getting an autograph" he said slightly turning to look at her.

"I hate quidditch" Hermione said stepping out after him. "Before today I had no idea who Jack Allen was" They walked towards the heads quarters in silence and soon they stood in front of the portrait. Persephone smiled at them mischievously and Hades whispered something in her ear.

"Medusa" Tom said making the door open and Hermione followed him inside.

She entered her room feeling sleepy but she needed to go down to the restricted section and she forced herself to stay awake. She went into the bathroom and dabbed some water onto her eyes. Feeling more awake she sat on her bed and started skimming through a charms textbook. After a while she started to feel hungry and badly craving a snack she grabbed her bag. She had a weakness for chocolate chip cookies and she was sure there was a pack inside. Still reading the book she felt around for the pack but couldn't find it. Feeling impatient she turned the bag upside down and the contents fell onto the bed but a book landed on the floor. She found the pack of cookies and tore it open. Munching on a biscuit she started to put everything back and she leaned down to pick up the book. She realised it was her heads hand book and trying to reach it she stretched a little. She managed to lift it with her fingertips but the book suddenly dropped and sprawled open. Sighing she got of the bed and bent down to pick it up. She was about to close the book when the word quidditch caught her eyes and she read the paragraph out of curiosity. Her eyes widened in disbelief and she re-read the page. After re-reading it for the third time she sat down and laughed out aloud.

According to the heads hand book, if one of the quidditch players became sick or injured then the head girl or the head boy of their house had to act in their place. She didn't remember the rule during her time and it must have been changed down the years. This was the answer to her problem. All she had to do was injure one of the Slytherin quidditch players and their head boy Tom Riddle would be forced to act as replacement. Then she would put her murder plan into action and easily kill him off. She kissed the cover of the book and put it back inside her bag. She put on her hooded cloak and sneaked down to the library. She tiptoed her way towards the restricted section and after noticing no one was there she entered. Deciding to jinx his broomstick she started to scan the section on dark magic and objects. She picked out a few interesting books and in the end she decided to take the three best ones. Carrying the heavy books she crept back to her room and dropped them onto her bed. She straightened out her spine and rubbed her back. She wanted to read them but she was feeling seriously sleepy. Feeling that she had accomplished enough for today she decided to go to bed. She hid the books away in her trunk and changed into her nightclothes. She blew out the candles and crept into bed. Hermione closed her eyes and immediately fell asleep.

Hermione woke up the next day feeling refreshed. On her way down to breakfast she stopped to read the notice board and for the first time in her life she read the quidditch section. She bit her lips as she read that a match between Gryffindor and Slytherin was scheduled to take place next week Friday. She had a short time to get everything ready and she had to act fast. She memorised the names of the Slytherin quidditch players and she wasn't surprised to find Abraxas Malfoy noted down as the captain. She entered the great hall and sat down at the Ravenclaw table deep in thought.

"Hey Maya" Susan said sitting down.

"Hello" she said smiling at Susan.

"Why aren't you eating?" Susan said pointing at her uneaten toast.

"I am" she said picking up her toast. "I'm just thinking"

"About what?"

"Oh nothing really" she said taking a bite out of the toast.

"Come on Maya, it can't be nothing" Susan said adding milk to her bowl of cereal.

"Just random thoughts, nothing important" she said with her mouth full.

"Susie" a loud voice suddenly said making her and Susan look up.

"Xav" Susan said smiling.

"Hey, do you mind?" Xavian said pointing between them.

"Not at all" Susan said moving to make space and Xavian sat down between them. She carried on eating and she was too lost in her thoughts to focus on Susan and Xavian's conversation. She suddenly noticed Xavian glancing at her once in a while and she started to feel awkward. Still talking to Susan he caught her eye and this time he continued to stare at her. Feeling uncomfortable she looked away and her eyes landed on Tom. She was surprised to find he wasn't staring at her. Instead his eyes were focused on Xavian and hate was clearly showing in his eyes. The word quidditch made her pay attention to Susan and Xavian's conversation but her gaze still remained on Tom.

"The Slytherin's have been given special permission to practice today." Xavian said looking miserable. "That stupid Slughorn, he's so biased. That should have been us out there." So the Slytherin team were going to be out practicing today, this was good information.

"Cheer up Xav" Susan said patting him on the back. "I'm sure Gryffindor will win"

"I feel like cursing a bludger to beat the crap out of them" Yes, that could work. She could curse a bludger to attack one of the players and she started to mentally go through all the suitable curses she could use. "Who are you supporting Maya?" Xavian suddenly asked. "Gryffindor or Slytherin" Her eyes were still on Tom and she was too busy thinking to notice Xavian had asked her a question. Tom suddenly locked eyes with her and they continued to stare at each other but Hermione wasn't really aware.

"Maya" Susan yelled making her jump.

"What? "Hermione said looking at Susan with an annoyed expression.

"Xav asked you a question" Susan said gesturing towards Xavian.

"Oh, I'm sorry" Hermione said looking at Xavian. "What was the question?"

"Don't worry, I think I know the answer" Xavian said getting up and he quickly left.

"Maya, how could you do that to him" Susan said glaring at her.

"Do what?"

"Xav asked if you wanted Gryffindor or Slytherin to win. You didn't answer and you kept on staring at Tom. I know you don't like Xav but you didn't have to do that" What Xavian had said earlier made sense now. He must have thought she was staring at Tom because she fancied him and therefore she was supporting Slytherin to win.

"I didn't do it intentionally" she said sipping some orange voice.

"Sure you didn't" Susan said in a singsong voice. "You don't like Tom but you totally zone out and stare at him" She really hadn't been staring at him on purpose and her thoughts had been on ways to curse a bludger not on Tom. "You claim that he doesn't like you but did you see the way he was giving Xav a death glare."

"That's because he hates Xavian" she said angrily.

"When are you ever going to understand Maya" Susan said tapping her on the forehead. "He was clearly jealous of Xav sitting next to you"

"That's rubbish" she snapped. "He stared at Xavian like that because he hates him and I don't come into it"

"Fine, have it your way but your wrong" Susan said crossing her arms. The girl was talking absolute nonsense. Why would he be jealous of Xavian? If Tom really wanted to sit next to her then he could easily do so in class but for some reason he avoided her like the plague and always sat two seats away. He obviously didn't like her and she knew he hated Xavian from the way he had acted towards him at the Halloween ball.

She put on her cloak and stepped outside. It was cold and shivering she made her way towards the greenhouse for herbology. She stepped inside and walked towards her usual table. Tom was already there and she made sure she was standing at a distance he always liked to maintain. He was staring ahead with a blank expression and he briefly glanced at her then he went back to his staring. It was warm inside the greenhouse and she started to take of her cloak. She suddenly noticed Xavian staring at her and she paused halfway. She was used to being stared at, Tom did it all the time but the way Xavian was looking at her made her feel seriously uncomfortable. She turned sideways and took of her cloak. She turned back to find Xavian still staring at her and she immediately looked away.

"Silence" Professor Stephen Reed shouted and everyone became quiet. "Today we are going to be working with this" Reed said lifting up a plant pot. "You should all be able to recognise it, can anyone name it?" The class whispered amongst themselves while Hermione and Tom raised their hands. "Mr Riddle" Reed said pointing and Hermione put her hand down feeling annoyed. Reed let her answer sometimes but he always seemed to favour Tom.

"It's an abyssinian shrivelfig" Tom said putting his hand down.

"Correct" Reed said smiling at him. "Now, I can see some of you are confused. This is a mature form of abyssinian shrivelfig and the young ones are mostly used in shrinking potions but the mature ones have much greater use." Reed lifted the plant pot higher. "See the brown bark?" Reed said pointing. "This is missing in the young ones and the extent of lignification indicates its age. The bark has white spots at intervals and these are known as sap spots" Reed said placing a finger on one of the spots. "If you pierce the bark here and massage it at the top with your fingertips then the sap should pour out. The abyssinian shrivelfig sap has many healing properties and your aim is to fill this" Reed lifted up a see through vial. "The first person to fill a vial will receive 20 house points" he said setting the vial down. "Make sure the skewer is not inserted more than 2 cm or you will kill the plant. They are over there" Reed said pointing at the back. "Take one each and get started" Everyone rushed off to get one and Hermione followed.

She set her plant down on the table and carefully examined the bark. There were more white spots at the top than the bottom and she randomly chose one. She picked up her skewer and all of a sudden she felt nervous. She had never done this before and she had a bad feeling she might accidentally kill her plant. She looked towards Tom to find him slowly digging his skewer into the plant and he had an expression of concentration. She positioned her skewer with an unsteady hand and she noticed it had a scale at the top. Well, that should make it easier to know when it was 2 cm and she slowly pushed the skewer in. She pulled it out at the right length and it left a neat little hole. She held up the vial close to it and she started to rub the bark above with her fingertips. For a while nothing happened then a few drops of orange liquid fell into the vial. The drops continued to fall at a very slow rate and it would probably take a whole lesson to fill the vial. She looked up to see how the others were doing and it looked like the same situation with everyone else.

She turned to look at Tom and her eyes widened in disbelief. The liquid from his plant was continuously leaking and his vial was half full. He was rubbing it with his finger tips like you were meant to and she couldn't see him doing anything different. So how was he making the plant react like that? He suddenly looked at her and she glared back at him. Soon his vial was full and he handed it over to Reed. He received 20 house points and Reed announced it to the whole class. He walked back to the table and started to stare ahead with a blank expression. She looked towards him feeling frustrated and she wondered if he was going to tell her how he had done it. She felt like asking him but if he wasn't in an answering mood he would probably insult her and she didn't want to fight. After some time her hand was starting to ache and she felt like giving up. What was the point if it was going to be four drops per five minutes? She was about to put the vial down when she noticed Tom staring at her hands.

"Do you have warm hands Granger?" he suddenly asked and she nearly dropped the vial in shock.

"What?" she said weakly, she must have misheard him.

"Your hands Granger" he said sounding annoyed. "Are they warm?" So she hadn't heard wrong but why the hell was he asking her that? "Have you gone so dumb that you can't understand what I'm saying" he suddenly snapped and one of his hands clenched into a fist. Oh, Merlin. He was getting angry and she should quickly answer.

"Erm--I don't think so" she said touching her wrists. "They're kind of warm though"

"Cast a warming spell on your hands"

"Why?" she said looking at him with a confused expression.

"Abyssinian shrivelfigs like warm hands"

"Oh" she said finally understanding why he had asked her that weird question. He went back to staring ahead in silence and she warmed up her hands with a spell. She rubbed the plant again and this time a stream of the liquid started to flow. She felt happy to have learnt one more new thing and she wondered where he got his knowledge from.

After herbology she had some free time before her next class started and she decided to sit in the great hall. She sat at the Ravenclaw table and tore open a pack of cookies. Taking a bite out of her biscuit she started to read a book and after reading a few pages she suddenly noticed someone staring at her. She mentally groaned when she realised it was Xavian and he was standing near the doors talking to two other Gryffindor boys but his eyes were fixed on her. Feeling annoyed she left the great hall and went down to the library. The only down side of reading in the library was that you couldn't eat but it was better than having Xavian stare at her. She would have gone down to her room but she couldn't be bothered to walk up and down so many stairs when the next class was going to start soon.

She entered the potions class room and on her way towards her table she overheard Malfoy telling someone that quidditch practice was at five. Great, now she knew the time and all she had to do was sort out a way to curse the bludger. Slughorn started to explain something and Hermione started to pay attention. At the end of his explanation he asked a question and two hands immediately shot up. Slughorn looked back and forth between Hermione and Tom's raised hands with an unsure expression.

"Tom my boy, I'm sure you know the answer" Slughorn said smiling at him. "Let's see if Miss Granger does" Tom put his hand down with a neutral expression. She started to answer the question and she suddenly noticed one of his hands was balled into a fist.

Soon everyone started to make their potion and Tom brought out his old rusty looking cauldron. He noisily slammed it into the middle of the table and Hermione jumped. Looks like the dark lord was having one of his mood swings and she had a huge urge to roll her eyes. He really shouldn't bang his cauldron like that, because the next time he did there was a good possibility he could make a hole appear. She would have suggested that they use her brand new cauldron but she knew Tom wouldn't take it too well. It wasn't her fault that Slughorn had chosen her over him but it had obviously put him in a bad mood. He glared at her and she smiled, one of his hands became balled into fists and she regretted smiling at him. Oops, she'd just made him angrier but the damage was done. She was glad they were in class otherwise she was sure he would have hexed her. They started to make the potion and throughout the entire potions class he didn't say a word to her. As she left the classroom she found the knowledge hungry side of her missing Tom's explanations and she half wished Slughorn hadn't chosen her but stealing his limelight had been worth it.

At lunchtime Hermione decided to skip her meal and she rushed towards the heads quarters. She entered her room and took out the dark magic books on object cursing. She sat on her bed and skimmed through the books. After a while something interesting caught her eye and she read the page carefully. It was a two step spell and if it was cast on an object, then the object would violently attack the nearest person for about five minutes before becoming inactive. The caster would have a minute to place the object in a secure container before the spell sprang into action. This spell was perfect for her use and she memorised the instructions for a couple of minutes.

She put on her hooded cloak and left the heads quarters. She crept down the corridor and the castle was mostly empty as everyone was having lunch. She sneaked out the back entrance and walked towards the other part of the castle. A small section of the castle was situated close to the quidditch pitch and it was exclusively used by quidditch players. It had changing rooms, showers, quidditch uniforms and housed the equipment as well. It was chilly and no one was outside. Thanking the weather she hurried forward and before entering the building she looked around to make sure no one was watching. She doubted anyone would recognise her with the hooded cloak but it was still good to be cautious. She stepped inside and started searching. After looking inside various rooms she came across the familiar looking trunk engraved with the snitch. Hermione opened the trunk and she jumped as something moved. She relaxed as she realised it was the trapped snitch and she pulled out a bludger. The iron ball vibrated in her left hand trying to break free but she held onto it strongly and pointed her wand at it with her right hand.

"Celer" she said twirling her wand over it three times and the ball faintly glowed red. "Adflicto affligo" she said flicking her wand and the ball glowed bright red. She quickly threw the bludger into the trunk and snapped the lid shut. Everything was set in place now and Hermione stood up smiling. The Slytherin team would come down to practice and as soon as they opened the trunk the bludger would injure one of them.

In all her afternoon classes Tom didn't talk to her but he stared at her hatefully or banged objects when the professor wasn't looking. She remained calm and she didn't do anything to make it worse. She felt happy knowing that she was a thorn in the dark lord's side and she couldn't wait to get rid of him for good.

At the end of the day she impatiently paced her room and glanced at the clock once in a while. It was five minutes till five. Soon the Slytherin quidditch team would be getting together for practice and she was starting to get more worried by the second. What if something went wrong? What if the Slytherin's re-scheduled at the last minute? The clock suddenly struck five and she stopped moving. Her heart started to beat faster and she stared at the clock for a while. The injured Slytherin would obviously be taken to the hospital wing and she decided to go down there.

She pushed open the hospital wing door and stepped inside. Empty beds met her eyes and she stared at them feeling anxious. Why wasn't the injured Slytherin here yet? Maybe they were on their way but what if the spell hadn't worked.

"Hello dear" a voice said making her jump and she turned to find Madam Whittaker standing near the office door.

"Madam Whittaker" Hermione said taking a deep breath.

"Glad to see you still remember who I am" she said placing her hands on hips. "Long time no see"

"I've been really busy with school work otherwise I would have visited" Hermione said looking guilty. The truth was she had been so occupied with planning Tom's murder that she had forgotten all about Madam Whittaker.

"That's okay sweetie" Madam Whittaker said smiling at her. "What can I do for you?" Hermione stared towards the door and wondered why they weren't here yet.

"Maya" Madam Whittaker said loudly and she looked away from the door.

"Sorry what did you say?" she said running a hand through her hair.

"Are you ill?" Madam Whittaker said looking at her with a concerned expression.

"Oh no, I'm fine" she said in a high pitched voice and she looked towards the door again. "Its just erm--" she tried to think of something suitable to make up. "I've --I've been having really bad nightmares and I need a dreamless sleep potion"

"You're in luck" Madam Whittaker said walking towards a shelf. "I just brewed up a new batch." Suddenly sounds of shouting and crying could be heard and Hermione hoped it would be them.

"Merlin" Madam Whittaker said rushing towards the door. "Sounds like someone's hurt themselves bad" The door burst open and the sight filled her with joy. She had never been so happy in her entire life to see a bunch of Slytherin's. "Put him down" Madam Whittaker shouted and they dumped the crying boy covered in blood on the nearest bed. "What happened?" Madam Whittaker asked rushing over to the injured boy.

"We sent him to fetch the equipment and he claims that the bludger attacked him" Malfoy said stepping forward. "However when we arrived the bludger wasn't doing anything like that" Malfoy said sneering at the boy. "We have reason to believe that he doesn't want to divulge how he actually got injured" Malfoy said suddenly glaring at him.

"I swear that thing attacked me" the boy wailed as Madam Whittaker cleaned away the blood.

"Really Turner" Malfoy hissed. "Then why didn't it attack any of us?"

"I'm not lying, it attacked me" the boy said tearfully.

"How could you break your right hand?" Malfoy snapped. "We have a match next week and you're the damn seeker" Malfoy suddenly shouted and the boy started to cry more loudly.

"Mr Malfoy, do not shout at the patient" Madam Whittaker said sternly.

"How can you catch the snitch if you don't have a hand?" Malfoy said angrily and he suddenly looked frightened. "What if you can't play at all?" Malfoy said slowly. "Do you know what that means?" Malfoy shouted looking furious.

"You're making the patient very distressed" Madam Whittaker shouted. "Mr Malfoy if you shout one more time you'll have to leave."

"Sorry Madam" Malfoy said in a forced calm voice. "I should have never trusted a fourth year to be a seeker" Malfoy said turning towards Lestrange.

"Turner's probably not hurt that bad" Lestrange said crossing his arms. "He'll probably recover in a day or two"

"I hope to Merlin your right" Malfoy said running his hands through his hair. "Because if he can't play you know what that means" Malfoy said with a wavering voice and Lestrange nodded his head with a scared expression. Malfoy suddenly noticed her in the corner of the room. "What are you doing here Granger?" Malfoy said sneering at her and all the Slytherin's suddenly looked at her.

"None of your business Malfoy" she said glaring at him.

"Oh sorry Maya" Madam Whittaker said looking up. "The dreamless sleep potions on that shelf" Madam Whittaker pointed and then she went back to examining Turner's arm. Malfoy and the Slytherin's stared at her hatefully as she grabbed the bottle and walked towards the door.

"You take care Maya" Madam Whittaker shouted as she stepped outside.

"I will" she said closing the door. Hermione chucked the bottle inside her bag and slightly pushed the hospital wing door open. She peered through the gap and listened carefully. She needed to know if the boy was hurt enough to be excluded from playing otherwise all her hard work would have been for nothing. Madam Whittaker appeared to be bandaging the boys arm and he wasn't crying loudly anymore.

"Take this Mr Turner" Madam Whittaker said holding up a spoonful of green liquid. "It will ease the pain" the boy swallowed the liquid and Madam Whittaker fed him another spoonful.

"Madam, how long will it take for him to recover?" Malfoy asked hesitantly. "We have a match next week" Malfoy said in a strained voice and Hermione bit her lips in worry.

"All the bones in his right arm have been crushed" Madam Whittaker said waving a wand over Turner's arm. Malfoy, Avery and Lestrange paled at her words while Hermione felt hopeful. "I'm afraid it's going to take at least two weeks to re-grow them" Madam Whittaker said looking up and Hermione felt like doing a victory dance.

"Two weeks" Malfoy said weakly and he clutched Lestrange for support while the other Slytherin's looked scared.

"That's right so he won't be able to play quidditch next week" Madam Whittaker said confirming what the Slytherin's had feared and they suddenly started to bombard Malfoy with questions. "Mr Malfoy" Madam Whittaker shouted. "Tell your group to be quiet or they'll all have to leave"

"Silence" Malfoy roared putting his hands up and everyone became quiet.

"He hates quidditch" Lestrange said looking panicked. "He's going to kill us when we tell him" Hermione knew they were talking about Tom and all the Slytherin's looked frightened but Turner looked confused.

"Don't you think I know that?" Malfoy hissed and he nervously ran his fingers through his long blonde hair while all the Slytherin's watched his every move with fearful expressions. "Since it's his fault" Malfoy said sneering and pointing at Turner. "He's going to be the one that tells him"

"Tell what and to who?" Turner squeaked as Madam Whittaker carefully placed his arm in a sling.

"So you didn't even bother reading the book of rules before you signed up" Malfoy said venomously. "No matter, I'll enlighten you" Malfoy snapped "If more than one quidditch player is injured then the match is normally postponed--" Malfoy said seething with rage. "--but if one quidditch player is unable to play then their houses head girl or head boy has to replace them temporarily" he finished in a high pitched voice.

"I see" Turner said wincing in pain as Madam Whittaker positioned his arm.

"I think it has slipped your mind Turner" Malfoy said angrily. "But I'll refresh your memory" Malfoy walked over to Turner's bed and leaned over him. "The Slytherin head boy is Tom Riddle" Malfoy said slowly and Turner's eyes widened in fear.

"I can't tell him" Turner started to cry again. "It's Riddle, his--he'll--I can't be the one to tell him" Turner started to sob loudly looking panicked.

"Mr Malfoy, stop frightening him" Madam Whittaker snapped. "Calm down Mr Turner" Madam Whittaker said in a soothing voice but Turner continued to cry. "I really don't see what all the fuss is about" Madam Whittaker said fetching a bottle of skellogrow. "Mr Riddle is a kind young man and he would be happy to help in a situation like this"

"Of course Riddle is kind and helpful" Malfoy said sarcastically. "And hell is just an alternative name for heaven" he muttered in a low voice and he tugged at his hair with both of his hands.

"If telling him is such a big issue then I could do it for you" Madam Whittaker said pouring some skellogrow in a glass. "I could owl him to come down right now"

"No" Malfoy and all the Slytherin's shouted at once.

"Alright, I won't if you all feel that strongly about it" Madam Whittaker said looking at them with a puzzled expression. "But I'll have to inform your head of house"

"Slughorn can tell Riddle, we don't have to do it" Avery said cheerfully and all the Slytherin's suddenly looking relieved.

"No need to get too happy, we're still going to have to work with him" Lestrange said making all the Slytherin's look troubled again.

"We don't have a choice" Malfoy hissed. "And this is all your fault" he said glaring at Turner. "If you weren't stupid enough to break your arm we wouldn't have to deal with Riddle" Malfoy suddenly shouted and Turner burst into tears.

"Leave Mr Malfoy" Madam Whittaker shouted.

"Don't think your going to have an easy time resting here" Malfoy shouted punching Turner's mattress. "Riddle's going to want to meet the person that forced him to play quidditch and believe me when I say his going to make you pay" Malfoy said in a low threatening voice and Turner let out a frightened scream.

"That's enough" Madam Whittaker shouted. "All of you leave now or I'll summon the headmaster" The Slytherin's started to march towards the door while Madam Whittaker tried to calm Turner. Hermione quickly moved out the way and hurried down the stairs.

She walked towards the heads quarters feeling happy. Soon Tom would be forced to play quidditch and during the match she would make sure he fell to his death. She stood in front of Persephone and Hades portrait and it looked like they were having a meeting with lots of other portrait people. Noticing her presence they abruptly stopped talking.

"You look cheerful" Persephone said stepping forward. "Any particular reason?"

"Nothing really, just a good day" Hermione said shrugging her shoulders. "Medusa" she said making the door open and she stepped inside. Tom was sitting in his armchair reading. Noticing her presence he loudly snapped the book shut and stood up. Looks like the dark lord was still pissed of with her and she took a step back feeling worried but he didn't try to attack her. Tom disappeared into his room loudly slamming the door shut and Hermione sank into her red armchair smiling.

**I've been depressed and I'm sorry for the late update. My exam results are coming out on 16th of July and I'm so scared. **

**I have a feeling this chapter isn't well written but I tried my best. I re-wrote and re-edited this chapter for at least 20 times before I thought it was fit to be seen. But if you find something wrong then please forgive any errors. **

**A huge thank you to all my reviewers. I can't believe I have over 200 reviews and I read each review I get, no matter how long or short they are. Please leave me a review and let me know what you think of this chapter. **


	26. Cherry cookies

At breakfast Hermione layered jam onto her toast humming and she smiled once in a while. Everything was happening just like she wanted. Soon Voldemort would be dead and she would have her revenge. Still smiling she looked towards the Slytherin table and she found Tom sitting in his usual place. He was reading a book with a blank expression and once in a while he paused to eat. She noticed the Slytherin's whispering and stealing glances of their head boy. It looked like the whole of Slytherin knew but the dark lord obviously hadn't gotten the news yet. She knew from past observations that if he had known he wouldn't have appeared so relaxed and he definitely wouldn't have been eating.

"Things go well with Tom last night" Susan said making her look away.

"Nothing happened with Riddle" Hermione said angrily. "In case you forgot, we hate each other"

"Uh huh" Susan took a sip of her pumpkin juice. "You're glowing like a girl that's been kissed and you were smiling at Tom" Susan raised an eyebrow suggestively and Hermione almost choked on her food. This stupid girl had completely misinterpreted her behaviour.

"I was feeling happy about something else" she said glaring at Susan. "I coincidentally looked at Riddle while I was smiling, I wasn't smiling at him"

"Yeah right" Susan said looking unconvinced. "So what were you feeling happy about?" She had to make up something convincing fast.

"Erm--I--got an outstanding on my divinations essay" She said in a fake excited voice.

"There's something really wrong with you" Susan said looking at her like she had grown two heads.

"You don't understand" she said still faking excitement. "I've never gotten an outstanding in divination before"

"Still, it's not normal to get that happy over a grade" Susan said creasing her brows.

The great hall doors suddenly opened and Malfoy and his group entered with scared expressions. They all sat down huddled together and they shared worried glances with the other Slytherin's. Breakfast time would be ending soon and the staff table was almost empty. Slughorn was still seated and he was reading a note as he drank from a goblet. He suddenly got up and started to walk towards the Slytherin table. The Slytherin's fixed their eyes on Tom and Malfoy and his group were almost hugging each other. Hermione paused eating and also fixed her eyes on the dark lord. She couldn't wait to see how he reacted.

"Tom" Slughorn's loud voice boomed through the hall and Tom looked up startled but his expression became neutral in seconds.

"Yes sir" he said eyeing the staring Slytherin's with a curious look.

"Come up here my boy" Slughorn said motioning with his hand. "I need to speak to you about a situation"

"Of course sir" Tom stood up dusting his robes and walked over to Slughorn.

"Xavian Potter" Slughorn shouted turning towards the Gryffindor table. "Come up here young man" Everyone started to whisper and stare as Xavian slowly walked over with a troubled expression. "Abraxas" Slughorn called out. Malfoy shakily stood up and walked towards Slughorn staring at the floor. Tom's eyes flickered between Xavian and Malfoy and he creased his brows but in a couple of seconds his face was expressionless again.

"Are you aware of the situation Mr Malfoy?" Slughorn asked.

"Yes" Malfoy said bravely looking up and Tom narrowed his eyes at him. Malfoy started to bite his nails and Xavian looked back and forth between Tom and Malfoy with a worried expression.

"Whatever they told you sir, I didn't do it" Xavian said. "After class I never left the Gryffindor tower, you can ask Weasley and --"

"You're not in trouble Potter" Slughorn interrupted holding up a hand and Xavian's worried expression instantly melted. "You're the Gryffindor quidditch captain so I thought it important you know as well" At the word quidditch Tom's expression became puzzled for a second but then he looked at Malfoy sharply and Malfoy shrank back. "Turner got injured yesterday" Both of Tom's hands clenched into fists. "Tom, you are going to have to replace him as the Slytherin seeker" Tom's balled hands slightly shook but he still managed to maintain his emotionless face. Xavian suddenly smiled and Malfoy took another step back.

"Can't someone else do it sir" Tom said with a strained voice.

"Sorry my boy" Slughorn said giving him a sympathetic look. "Head boy rules state you have to replace him and I'm sure you'll make an excellent seeker" Slughorn's loud voice had easily carried through the hall and everyone was talking excitedly.

"Merlin, Tom's going to play quidditch." Susan said jumping up and down in her seat. "Do you know how many girls have dreamt about this?"

"I can imagine" Hermione said rolling her eyes. As soon as Slughorn left the hall Xavian turned towards the Gryffindor table and gave his team the thumbs up. Tom glared daggers at Malfoy and Malfoy stared back fearfully.

"I will be speaking to you about this later" Tom said in a low threatening voice and Malfoy looked like he was going to faint. Tom sat back down at the Slytherin table and he stared ahead unblinking. Everyone was talking loudly and the Slytherin's were the only ones whispering. Malfoy still remained standing with a frightened expression and Xavian suddenly burst out laughing making Malfoy's expression change to anger.

"Stupid Xav" Susan said with a worried expression. "He shouldn't laugh at Malfoy like that when he's so rubbish at duelling"

"Malfoy" Xavian said pausing breathlessly. "Don't even bother turning up unless your team wants to get humiliated"

"We're not going to lose Potter" Malfoy shouted and Xavian started to laugh again.

"Riddle's your seeker" Xavian said in between his laughter. "Riddle's your seeker" he repeated clutching his sides and he continued to laugh like a maniac. Tom's blank expression suddenly changed to reflect anger and Malfoy slowly backed away giving Xavian a pitying glance.

"Merlin, he shouldn't provoke Tom?" Susan said worriedly and noticing Tom's expression Hermione was beginning to think the same thing. "I don't think you know Maya" Susan said waving her hands to get Xavian's attention but it was no use. "Tom's always a gentleman but when someone makes fun of him, he can be really scary and violent"

"Oh" she said nodding her head like she had just found out. After having to deal with his high temper and ever changing moods on a daily basis she was well aware of his violent tendencies.

"What's so funny Potter?" Tom suddenly roared. Xavian immediately stopped laughing and everyone in the hall became quiet. Hermione's heart rate increased reflexively and she had to remind herself that he wasn't mad at her. Xavian stared at Tom with an unafraid expression and Tom glared at him.

"Idiot Xav" Susan said. "Why is he still standing there? He should run while he can" Noticing Tom getting angrier Hermione couldn't help but think the same thing.

"Have you ever played quidditch before Riddle?" Xavian said sneering at him and Tom slowly got up looking absolutely furious. Sensing danger the Slytherin's shrank away and Malfoy slowly walked towards the other end of the hall. Susan was whispering something inaudible and Hermione wondered if Xavian had a death wish. "Obviously not" Xavian said nastily. "After all quidditch is mostly a man's sport" Several gasps were heard throughout the hall and Tom's expression changed to reflect frightening anger.

"Riddle's a duelling champion, Xav's going to get himself killed" Susan said sounding hysterical. "Why the hell is he bringing up Riddle's sexuality in the open?"

"His sexuality" Hermione said with a confused expression.

"Don't you see Maya" Susan said still sounding hysterical. "Xav's just questioned Riddle's manliness and therefore indirectly his sexuality" Now she understood why so many people had gasped and from the looks of it Tom was going to lose it any second now.

"You're not much of a man are you Riddle" Xavian said tauntingly. "After all what kind of a man doesn't like girls" Tom's pale skin turned red with rage and Hermione couldn't ever recall him look so angry before.

"Oh my God, he didn't" Susan hissed burying her hands in her hair. Tom ran towards Xavian and pulled out his wand. Xavian drew his at the same time and they both stood pointing their wands at each other. "He's dead" Susan whispered and Hermione knew Xavian wouldn't stand a chance. Silence filled the hall and the air was thick with tension as everyone waited for them to make a move.

"So tell me Riddle" Xavian suddenly said breaking the silence. "Are you queer?" Everyone including Hermione gasped and a murderous glint entered Tom's eyes.

"Ignis derma" Tom shouted and a flash of orange light erupted from his wand. Xavian failed to block it and the spell hit him in the chest. He dropped his wand and fell to the floor screaming. Shouts filled the hall and the first years looked absolutely terrified. Hermione held her breath as it started to bring back horrible memories and Susan clung onto her in tears. Everyone started to get up and a crowd formed at a safe distance.

"Riddle calm down" Longbottom shouted. "Don't do anything stupid" Tom ignored him and continued to make Xavian scream. Bones grasped Longbottom's hand with a scared expression and he put an arm around her. Some of the professors at the staff table ran down and tried to stop it but Tom easily disarmed them.

"Fetch Dumbledore or Merrythought" A professor shouted and the other professors tried to talk Tom out of it but he wasn't listening. Tears continued to flow from Susan's eyes and she mumbled something inaudible. Hermione patted Susan on the back and continued to watch Tom with a horrified expression. She had seen Tom angry before but this time he looked different. There was this mad glint in his eyes and it made him look inhuman. She could almost see Voldemort's reflection in his face and she felt waves of fear as she continued to stare at him. Tom suddenly lifted the spell and started to repeatedly kick Xavian in the ribs. Xavian's cried out at each kick but Tom didn't show any signs of slowing down.

"Where's your Gryffindor bravery now?" a Slytherin shouted and a chorus of laughter rose from the Slytherin crowd.

"Do not encourage the fight" a professor shouted with a magically magnified voice. "Anyone caught encouraging will be reported to their head of house" the laughter immediately died down and the Slytherin's went back to talking.

"He does have my sympathies, I wouldn't wish Riddle on anyone" Malfoy drawled out. "But then again it does provide good entertainment" Malfoy said twirling his ponytail with a sickening smile and most of the Slytherin's seemed to agree. Hermione looked towards Malfoy with an angry expression and she felt like punching him. How the hell was watching someone get tortured entertainment? But to someone evil and twisted like Malfoy it probably was.

"Leave him alone" Susan shouted at the Slytherin's.

"We are not the ones attacking him, Riddle is" Malfoy said coolly.

"You're really dense for a Ravenclaw if you don't know its Riddle" Lestrange said and the Slytherin crowd erupted into laughter. Hermione was about to shout something in Susan's defence when Xavian let out a really loud scream and all eyes quickly went to him. Blood was pouring out of Xavian's mouth and he was shaking on the floor. Tom was still kicking him in the chest and Hermione was sure he had broken most of his ribs by now. Frightened screams were heard through out the hall and Hermione bit the insides of her cheeks.

"Oh my God, Xav" Susan wailed burying her head in her hands. Tom suddenly stopped kicking him and pointed his wand at Xavian's chest.

"Vitax reducto" Tom hissed and Xavian struggled gasping for breath. Hermione was suddenly reminded of the time Tom had used it on her and she momentarily closed her eyes.

"He can't breath" Susan said looking up from her hands. "He's going to die" Susan started to sob and Hermione tried to calm her down. People started to shout at Tom to stop but he still carried on. The professors tried to intervene and he threw them back with a spell. Clawing at Tom's feet Xavian started to make loud wheezing noises and Tom stamped on his hands with a smile on his face. Hermione's heart jumped as she noticed the smile, it wasn't a normal smile and it twisted his features in such an evil way that he appeared possessed. Xavian started to turn blue and everyone in the hall including the Slytherin's looked really scared.

The great hall doors suddenly burst open to reveal an angry looking Albus Dumbledore and the expression on his face was frightening. Dumbledore didn't look like himself and everything about him radiated power. Hermione stared at him in fear and fascination and she could see why people said Dumbledore was a powerful wizard. Everyone moved out the way and Tom stared at him hatefully. Dumbledore tried to non-verbally disarm Tom and he blocked Dumbledore but Hermione could see it had taken him effort as his face was screwed up in concentration. Dumbledore threw a spell at Xavian and he started to cough and breathe again. Tom pointed his wand at Dumbledore with a furious expression and Dumbledore pointed his wand back. The air suddenly crackled with electricity between Dumbledore and Tom and everyone backed away further. At this age Tom could manage to release raw magical energy through his wand and even though Dumbledore's was much stronger she couldn't help but be impressed. She noticed glints of fear enter Tom's eyes and he suddenly lowered his wand in defeat. Dumbledore put his wand down glaring at Tom and Tom stared back at him with pure loathing.

"Mr Riddle, go to the headmaster's office immediately" Dumbledore shouted and Tom slowly walked out with both of his hands clenched into fists. "Everyone go to your classes" Dumbledore shouted with a magically magnified voice and talking loudly everyone started to leave. Susan rushed over to Xavian and Hermione followed. Dumbledore was placing Xavian's bloodied form on a stretcher and Xavian appeared to have passed out. The other professors were talking to Dumbledore in urgent tones and Dumbledore was talking back in a calm voice.

"Is he okay?" Susan shouted interrupting the professors.

"He'll live" Dumbledore said levitating the stretcher. "Miss Granger and Miss Brewer please go to your classes"

"But Xavian--" Susan started.

"Is going to be alright" Dumbledore cut in. "You can visit him later in the hospital wing"

Hermione entered the potions classroom and sat in her usual place. After a while she glanced at Tom's empty seat. He had never sat close to her but it still felt odd without his presence. Tom had taken the quidditch thing far better than she had expected until Xavian got all horrible and personal. After the anger she had seen on his face it must have been hard for him not to shout crucio and she had to admit he had a lot of control. After the warning Xavian had given her at the Halloween ball he was an idiot to act like that and she had a feeling it had something to do with his suspicions that she fancied Tom. Slughorn started to explain something and he glanced at Tom's empty seat a couple of times. At the end of his explanation everyone started bring out their cauldrons. A flying envelope suddenly entered the classroom and it neatly landed on Slughorn's desk. As Slughorn read the letter his eyebrows rose high up into his forehead and Hermione figured it was about Tom. The class room door opened and Professor Hedger walked inside. Slughorn and Hedger talked for a while and Hermione couldn't hear what they were saying but they both had serious expressions on their faces.

"Attention everyone" Slughorn said with a magically magnified voice and everyone paused. "I have to leave for an important matter, Jane Hedger will watch over you. Leave your potion vials in there" Slughorn said pointing at a large box near his desk. "I will grade them tomorrow, keep up the good work" Slughorn pointed his wand at his throat and removed the spell then he left the classroom. Dippet must have summoned him as he was Tom's head of house and important decisions couldn't be made without his presence. Hermione sat still while everyone was busy making their potion. She had always used Tom's cauldron and she hadn't brought hers. She was about to go and get it when Susan tapped her on the shoulder.

"Do you want to join us?" Susan asked "I don't think Hedger will mind if we work in three's" It was fun working with Susan and her friend but she suddenly found herself missing Tom's explanations.

At lunchtime Hermione sat in the great hall feeling lonely. Susan and her girls were visiting Xavian in the hospital wing and they had offered her to come along but she had declined. She would have gone but knowing Xavian he would get the wrong idea and she didn't want to give him false hopes. She looked towards the Slytherin table and Tom was absent like she had expected. She quickly finished eating and deciding to go to her room she started to walk towards the heads quarters. As she walked down the stairs she heard male voices arguing and she realised they were on another set of stairs above hers. She paused out of curiosity and strained her ears. After a few seconds she recognised it as Malfoy's voice.

"Didn't you read it?" Malfoy's voice sounded angry.

"Why dose it have to be me?" That sounded like Crabbe or it could be Goyle, she wasn't sure they both sounded the same. "Why can't it be Goyle?" Now she knew it was Crabbe.

"Because you are thinner" That was definitely Lestrange. "Now stop acting like a bloody scared girl"

"Enough talk, lets do it" Avery's voice said.

"Why can't it be one of you? I don't want to do it" Crabbe said sounding scared.

"Grab him"" Malfoy shouted. Crabbe let out a scream and it was followed by sounds of a struggle. The voices and the footsteps gradually faded. Hermione resumed walking down the stairs and thought about what she had heard. What had Malfoy read and what was he making Crabbe do? She couldn't recall any spell or ritual that would work better if you were thinner but Crabbe hadn't wanted to do it and whatever they were making him do couldn't be pleasant. She thought about it for a while then she put it out of her head as she couldn't find an answer. She paused in front of the heads quarters portrait and it was filled with many portrait people. They were in a circle and Persephone and Hades were at the centre of it. Noticing her they immediately stopped talking and Persephone stepped forward.

"How are you dear?" Persephone asked smiling at her.

"I'm fine thank you"

"Password"

"Medusa" She entered the heads common room and shut the door. She was about to go up to her room when she noticed Tom. He was sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace and he was staring at the flames with a lost look in his eyes. She had never seen him in that position and she couldn't help but stare.

"What do you want Granger?" he suddenly whispered still staring at the flames.

"Nothing" she said quickly and she hurried up to her room. He couldn't be in a good mood after this morning and she didn't want him to take his anger out on her. She entered her room and took out her dark magic books on object cursing. She sat on her bed and started to read them. She was working on the next stage of her plan and she was trying to find a suitable spell that she could place on his broom stick. She spent the entire lunchtime searching through all the books and she narrowed it down to one best spell per book. In the end she decided to use a complex two part spell that involved a potion as well. All the other spells required her to maintain eye contact and continuously chant an incantation but this spell didn't. It was the best one to use since it would be easier and more discrete.

She read the instructions carefully without skimming. She had to cast the spells on the broomstick and on another object that would act as the activation object. Then all she had to do was say another spell while pointing at the activation object and the broomstick would automatically try to throw of its passenger. The spells were straightforward but the potion was hard to make and without it the spells wouldn't work. The potion had to be smeared onto the broomstick and the activation object before the spells were cast. She carefully read the potions instructions and she realised it would take an estimate of three days to make. It required 48 hours brewing time and she would need at least a day to make such a complex potion but the problem was she didn't have most of the ingredients. She creased her brows as she scanned the ingredients list once again and she hoped Slughorn would have them or else she would have to get hold of them somehow. The quidditch match was happening next Friday and she had roughly had nine days to get everything in order. She was getting a headache thinking about how she was going to make this all work. She bookmarked the page and stored all the books away.

She had some free time before her afternoon class started and she decided to go to the Ravenclaw common room to buy some cookies. Shiv Patil who she was sure was an ancestor of Parvati and Padma Patil sold various snacks in the common room during free time and sometimes in the evening. Running a trade in Hogwarts was obviously against the school rules but Hogsmeade weekends weren't frequent and so no one told on him. Everyone was always buying things from Shiv and he even sold things to people from other houses in the trophy room at lunchtime. It reminded her of the way Fred and George used to sell things and she felt her eyes water as she thought about puking pastilles and nosebleed nougats. She blinked away the tears and entered the Ravenclaw common room. Shiv was standing near a table littered with goods and there was a small line of people waiting to be served. She joined the queue and looked around for Susan but she wasn't there. She was probably in the dormitory but she didn't feel like going to see her. The girl was annoying most of the time and she didn't feel like hearing her cry over Xavian or worse hear a romance novel scene. After a while it was her turn to get served and Shiv greeted her with a smile.

"The usual Granger" he said holding up a pack of chocolate chip cookies.

"Yes" she said taking the pack and handing over 95 knuts.

"I have some other new biscuits you might like to try" Shiv said holding up a brown pack. "Chocolate digestives, very similar to chocolate chip cookies" Dippet's monthly allowance wasn't very much and she had to watch her money carefully.

"No thank you" she said walking away.

"Maybe next time" he called out looking hopeful.

"Maybe" she said turning to look at him. Stuffing the cookie pack into her bag she was about to leave when a short girl ran up to her looking panicked and she was obviously a first year.

"Head girl" the girl squeaked.

"Yes"

"Jennawont wakedont knowwhatto--"

"What?" Hermione interrupted. "Slow down, I can't understand what you're saying"

"Jenna won't wake up and I don't know what to do" the girl was close to tears now.

"Was she sleeping naturally or--"

"We were trying out a levitation spell with a chair--"

"Take me to her" she said drawing her wand and everyone in the Ravenclaw room turned to look at them.

"It accidentally fell on her head and she won't wake up" the girl said leading her to the first year girls dormitory.

"Stand back everyone" she shouted and the crowd of first years moved away from the unconscious girl. Hermione's eyes widened when she saw blood seeping from the girl's head and kneeling down she started to mutter spells to stop the blood flow. She couldn't heal the wound but this was the best she could do. She felt her pulse and she was glad to find the girl was still alive.

"Are you sure a chair fell on her?" she said conjuring a stretcher. The first years all started to answer at once and they pointed at a huge armchair. No wonder the girl was in this condition, she had been puzzled at how a chair had made her bleed this badly but it all made sense now.

"Is she-is she-" the girl said tearfully.

"She's alive" she said levitating the stretcher out of the dormitory and the girl followed. Everyone in the Ravenclaw common room started to stare and shout questions. Hermione hastily shouted an explanation and speed out the common room. Levitating the stretcher she ran towards the hospital wing and the girl started to confess how she was the one responsible.

"I didn't know it was going to hit her" the girl sobbed. "Will I get expelled?"

"I'm sure they won't expel you" Hermione said breathlessly. "It was an accident" she said pushing open the hospital wing door. Three occupied beds met her eyes. One of them had an unconscious Xavian, the next one had Turner looking ill and the last one had a crying Crabbe surrounded by Malfoy and his boy's. All eyes turned to her as she entered with the levitating stretcher. "Madam Whittaker" she shouted setting the stretcher down.

"Not another one" Madam Whittaker shouted coming out of her office holding bottles. "What is it? The national injury day" she said hastily setting down the bottles. Madam Whittaker levitated the girl onto an empty bed. She started to ask questions as she healed the girl and the crying first year answered them. Hermione looked towards the Slytherin's curiously and she wondered what had happened to Crabbe. She was thinking of asking Madame Whittaker as soon as she finished healing the girl. After Madam Whittaker had bandaged the girl's head she told the first year she could leave but the first year wanted to remain by the girl's bedside. "Hectic day Maya" Madam Whittaker said walking up to her. "Mr Potter was difficult to heal and he wouldn't stop screaming in pain. I had to give him a strong sleeping potion and just when I thought I could rest Mr Crabbe turned up"

"What happened to Crabbe?" Hermione asked looking towards the Slytherin's and Madam Whittaker was about to answer when the hospital wing doors creaked open.

"Not another one" Madam Whittaker mumbled turning and Hermione looked towards the door. Dippet entered with Tom Riddle by his side and Tom glanced at her then he fixed his eyes on the Slytherin's.

"Headmaster, is everything alright. Has someone else been injured?" Madam Whittaker said walking up to him with a worried expression.

"Everything is fine" Dippet said holding up a hand.

"Are you here to question Xavian again because--"

"I don't need to question him anymore" Dippet said putting his hand down. "I've brought Mr Riddle here to apologise for his actions"

"Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said with a shocked expression. "He did that to Mr Potter?" she said weakly. Tom Riddle lowered his gaze looking very ashamed and Hermione knew it was acting but it was very good acting.

"Well, there are dozens of witnesses that say he was provoked" Dippet said. "And he has told me that he was under a lot of stress from studying and he just lost his temper" Tom stressed from studying, that was 100% rubbish. He was so knowledgeable in everything he could pass all his exams with an O without ever having to open a book.

"My anger got the better of me" Tom said in a low voice and he looked really sorry. "I really regret what I have done and if you would allow me Madam, I would like to apologise to Mr Potter" One of his hands momentarily clenched into a fist but no one really noticed. Madam Whittaker's expression softened and she looked at Tom sympathetically.

"I would let you Mr Riddle but Mr Potter has been given a strong sleeping potion"

"Sleeping potion" Tom said in a higher voice and his apologetic expression momentarily vanished but it was back again in the blink of an eye. He was obviously pleased that he wouldn't have to apologise to Xavian. "I will apologise to him at another time then. When he wakes up could you tell him that I'm sorry?" He sounded so sincere that she was finding it hard to believe that was actually his voice.

"Of course Mr Riddle, I'll even send you an owl when he wakes"

"That is greatly appreciated, thank you Madam"

"Well that's settled then" Dippet said looking tired. "Oh, hello Miss Granger" Dippet said noticing her.

"Hello" she answered back feeling self conscious as all eyes in the room were on her.

"She brought in an injured first year" Madam Whittaker said pointing at the bed with the girl and Tom glanced at it. "Her spells to stop the blood flow were excellent and I'm glad you made her head girl. I don't think I've met another student that could manage such a thing with the exception of Mr Riddle of course"

"Yes, Miss Granger is an exceptionally bright witch" Dippet said smiling at her. "Horace recommended her and he has never been wrong about a student's capabilities" So it was Slughorn's fault that she had been chosen as head girl but she wasn't complaining. She wouldn't have been able to observe Tom closely if it hadn't been for that.

"If you don't mind me asking Madam" Tom suddenly said. "What is wrong with Crabbe?" Tom said stepping closer to the Slytherin's and they all tensed. "It always concerns me when someone from my own house is injured" Tom fixed his eyes on Crabbe and Crabbe stared back at him with wide eyes. Hermione wondered why he was bothering but maybe he was curious to know as well.

"Nothing life threatening" Madam Whittaker said pulling away Crabbe's blanket and it revealed one of Crabbe's arm in bandages. "Mr Crabbe's broken a hand badly"

"I'm sorry to hear that" Tom said emotionlessly. "How long will it take to heal?"

"About two weeks" Madam Whittaker said pulling the cover back up and Tom's lips curled into half a smile but it vanished in the blink of an eye.

"Does that mean he won't be able to play quidditch?" Tom said trying to make his voice sound sad but he didn't completely manage. Hearing his words Hermione nearly had a heart attack. Oh Merlin, if Crabbe couldn't play then the match would be postponed and all her hard work would have been for nothing. The argument she had overheard between Malfoy and his boys suddenly made sense. When Malfoy had said, didn't you read it, he must have been referring to a note Tom had sent them. Tom had obviously threatened them to injure someone on the team and Crabbe had been the best choice because Malfoy could easily boss him around. Also Crabbe being thinner than Goyle would make the bones easier to reach and break.

"I regret to say he won't be able to play" Madam Whittaker said confirming her worst fear and Hermione suddenly felt light headed.

"It's such a shame the match will have to be postponed" Tom said putting on a sad expression but his eyes showed otherwise. "Especially when I was looking forward to the challenge of being a seeker"

"The match will not be postponed" Dippet suddenly said and Tom's expression went blank. Not believing her ears Hermione waited for Dippet to say something else and the Slytherin's looked at their head boy with terrified expressions.

"But the rules state sir--" Tom started slowly.

"I am aware of the rules" Dippet said interrupting. "But the Daily Prophet wants to do an article on how safe the school is after the poisoning incident, and I thought it best if they came during the quidditch match. I've already sent them the conformation of the date and the time." Both of Tom's hands slowly clenched into fists. "Mr Crabbe can be easily replaced by another Slytherin so there's nothing to worry about." Dippet smiled at Tom but Tom did not return the smile. "The reporter will ask questions and I hope you will answer them all Mr Riddle. I wouldn't trust anyone else with the answers and you will of course portray the school in a positive light" Dippet paused waiting for an answer.

"Of course sir" Tom said with a controlled voice.

"Excellent" Dippet said beaming at him. "You can now look forward to the challenge of being a seeker and I'm sure you'll make a brilliant one Mr Riddle"

"Thank you sir" Tom said unblinking. "I'll try not to disappoint you" Dippet gave Tom one last smile and left the hospital wing. Hermione felt like dancing in joy. She had thought everything was ruined until Dippet saved the day. The match couldn't be postponed and she was sure Dippet was keeping Tom on the team just so he could answer the questions. He couldn't overrule Dippet and now Tom truly had no choice but to play quidditch. Too bad Dippet's reputation was going to get worse after the reporters witnessed Tom falling to his death but she was doing it for the greater good and ruining Dippet's career didn't seem that big when it came to removing Voldemort. Tom stared at the door with his clenched fists slightly shaking and he looked livid.

"Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said making his expression go blank. "Are you alright?"

"I have a headache" he forced out. "I think I'll sleep it off" He ran out the door and Madam Whittaker sighed.

"Poor boy" Madam Whittaker said rolling up the unused bandages. "Everyone expects so much from him, no wonder he has a headache" Tom had obviously lied. He didn't have a headache, he was angry that he would still have to play quidditch and he was probably murdering owls at this very minute. The Slytherin's were talking in hushed tones and they didn't look very happy. Saying Goodbye to Madam Whittaker she left the hospital wing. There was still some time left till the start of the afternoon class and she decided to go down to the library for a quick read.

When it was time for herbology she left the library. The class wasn't in the greenhouse today and Professor Helen Hammer usually took those classes instead of Professor Reed. She entered the classroom and Hammer smiled at her and she smiled back. Helen Hammer was a nice old lady with white hair and she acted more like a grandmother and less like a Professor. Tom was sitting at the front staring at his closed text book and Hermione sat down two seats away from him. He didn't acknowledge her presence and he kept on staring at the book. Hammer put up some pictures of plants and asked if anyone recognised them. Hermione immediately raised her hand but she slightly lowered it when she realised Tom hadn't moved. Xavian's questions and his failed attempt to get out of quidditch must have affected him badly and she felt joy seeing the dark lord feeling down. She raised her hand high with a smile on her lips and while she answered the question correctly Hammer looked towards Tom with a concerned expression.

Hammer handed out a bunch of herbs labelled with numbers and they had to name them. She spread out the herbs at the centre of the table and picked up herb number one. She knew the pink herb well and she wrote down Daminia next to number one. When she was down to number ten Tom was still staring at his book and she wondered if he was going to attempt naming any of them. She named the last two herbs and stared at her list satisfied. Tom suddenly picked up his quill and he looked at the herbs for a while then he quickly scribbled down all twelve names. How could he name them all so fast by just looking at them? He hadn't even picked one up or inspected them closely. Either he was going to be wrong at naming some of them or he was an expert in herbs. Come to think of it, Neville Longbottom could name herbs by just looking at them and he had been the best in his class. At the end of class Hammer came around to collect their parchments and she smiled warmly at Tom when she collected his but he didn't return the smile.

"Mr Riddle, you have named them all correctly" Hammer said running her eyes over his list. "10 points to Slytherin" Damn it, he was a genius in herbology just like Neville.

"Thank you Professor" Tom said in a low voice and he started to stare at his book again. Hammer picked up her parchment and she suddenly felt nervous.

"Very good Miss Granger" Hammer said making her relax. "All correct, 10 points to Ravenclaw" Hermione's lips stretched into a smile. She had gotten them all right and she looked at him to see if he was bothered by this but his eyes were still glued to the book. Everyone started to leave the classroom and she started to pack her things. "Mr Riddle" Hammer called from her desk and Tom walked over to her "I have the herbs you requested" she said holding a brown paper bag towards him.

"Thank you professor" he said taking the bag. "I really appreciate it" Hermione started to walk towards the door and she wondered what kind of herbs they were.

"Mr Riddle, if you have a minute there's something I'd like to show you" she heard Hammer say and she paused with her hand on the door handle. What did Hammer want to show Tom? She turned to see Hammer leading Tom into the store room and then the store room door closed. She suddenly realised she was alone in the classroom and she was about to leave when she noticed the store room door wasn't shut properly. She could easily take a peek at what Hammer was showing him and curiosity got the better of her. Placing a disillusionment charm on herself she tiptoed closer to the store room and peered through the small opening. "It just came in yesterday" Hammer said bringing over a huge plant pot covered with white cloth. She could see from Tom's expression that he was curious and she was dying to know as well. Hammer suddenly unveiled it and Tom's eyes widen but Hermione stared at it disappointed. It was just an ugly plant with yellow flowers and Hammer was probably going soft in the head from old age.

"Professor, is that what I think it is?" Tom said in a high pitched voice and Hermione creased her brows. He was clearly excited and he was staring at the plant like a five year old stared at candy. If Tom Riddle found it interesting then the plant had to be valuable but she couldn't ever recall seeing it in books. Maybe he was acting to keep Hammer happy but it didn't look like acting and if it was then it was an order of Merlin worthy acting.

"You recognise it Tom" Hammer said staring at the plant fondly.

"Of course Professor" he said bending down to inspect it closely. "I think it's about two years old"

"Two years and six months actually"

"A Zulfitack plant" he said staring at it transfixed. "They're so hard to obtain" What the hell was a Zulfitack? She suddenly recalled reading something like that earlier at lunchtime and after wracking her brains she remembered. The broom cursing potion required Zulfitack flowers and if they were rare then this plant was her only chance. She would have to sneak back and steal one later. "They can be used to make the darkest potions" he said in a high pitched voice and he gently stroked the flowers with his long fingers. "Combine Zulfitack flowers and Dahlia with a dash of sulphur and you'll have the most potent skin peeling potion" his voice had so much feeling that she felt goose bumps form on her arms and Hammer suddenly looked scared. "Or you could combine it with mugwort and dragon's blood to put your enemies in a coma but it's not worth the effort since the ministry invented a counter potion" he finished in a bitter voice and he looked up glaring. Taking in Hammer's frightened expression Tom quickly schooled his features into looking apologetic. "I'm sorry Professor" He said in a low voice. "I didn't mean to talk about dark potions. I just recalled reading about them somewhere and I thought I'd mention it"

"That's okay Tom" Hammer said putting a hand on her heart. "You had me worried there for a minute" Tom flashed her a charming smile and Hammer smiled back. Good God, was it that easy for Tom Riddle to fool people?

"It's a good thing those plants are rare" Tom said inspecting a leaf. "Thinking about all the evil it could do makes my skin crawl" Coming from a dark lord that was very funny and he was definitely acting now. "But there's so much good it can do Professor" he said cupping one of the flowers. "Just because it's associated with dark magic people tend to over look that fact" He was probably going to start talking about all the good potions that could be made so Hammer wouldn't get suspicious. "It can speed up bone healing by weeks and there are theories that it could be used to re-grow limbs served by dark magic" Looks like she had been right in her thinking.

"I know but people always tend to be prejudiced when it comes to dark magic" Hammer said picking up a kettle.

"I hate it when people do that" he said looking down at the floor and one of his hands clenched into a fist.

"I think I can understand" Hammer said making Tom look up sharply. "You're a Slytherin and people think your whole house is evil but I know you're a good boy Tom" How can Hammer not see through his mask? He was everything that represented evil. "I heard about what you did to Xavian Potter" Tom looked back down at the floor and both of his hands clenched into fists "I know he made some awful comments but you shouldn't let anger take you over like that"

"I will try to control myself better in the future" he forced the words out of him and his balled hands were slightly shaking.

"Sometimes we all lose our temper" Hammer said waving her wand and filling the kettle with water. "But you have always been kind and helpful. I think people are jealous of your brilliance and you shouldn't let them provoke you into tarnishing your perfect school record" Tom suddenly looked up and smiled warmly at Hammer.

"I will keep your advice in mind Professor" Tom said pulling out his wand. "You must be tired Madam" he said flashing her another of his charming smiles and Hermione couldn't help but notice how white his teeth was. With that smile he could beat Lockhart any day. "Allow me" Tom said levitating the kettle out of her hands and he pulled out a chair for her. Looks like he was putting on his I'm so kind and helpful act.

"Oh, go on then young man" Hammer said sitting herself down on the chair and Tom set the kettle down on a mini stove. "Do you always make tea for your professors? Now I know why your grades are so high" she said jokily.

"I only make tea for you madam and no one else" Tom said giving her a mock bow and Hermione rolled her eyes. This was so unlike the real Tom Riddle and that fake cheerful expression on his face made him appear like a completely different person. The old woman laughed and handed him a container full of tea bags. "Two sugars" he said holding up a spoon.

"Yes please" It was strange watching the dark lord do something normal like make tea and she held down the urge to laugh. With a smile on his face he carefully levitated the tea cup towards her. While Hammer was busy drinking tea she noticed Tom eyeing up the plant with a smirk and she realised what he was trying to do. He wanted to steal a flower and that's the reason he was being so nice to Hammer.

"This is excellent tea" Hammer said suddenly getting up "I think you deserve a treat"

"There's no need" he said looking at the plant once more.

"I insist. Do you like chocolate chip cookies Mr Riddle?" Tom's expression suddenly darkened and he momentarily closed his eyes.

"I like them" his voice sounded forced and Hermione wondered why he'd gone all gloomily at the mention of chocolate chip cookies. Maybe being evil meant you lost your taste in sweet things or maybe he disliked chocolate. Hammer turned around and started to rummage in the cupboard. Hermione watched open mouthed as Tom quickly plucked a flower and stuffed it into his brown paper bag. Hammer turned back around holding a jar full of chocolate chip cookies. "I was wondering if you have cherry cookies" he said looking hopeful. "I like them better"

"You're in luck, I have some" She turned around once again and Tom stole another flower. Greedy dark lord, now he had two flowers and she was sure he was going to brew some harmful potions with them. Hammer loaded one half of a plate with chocolate chip cookies and the other half with cherry cookies. "Enjoy" she said handing him the plate. Hammer and Tom started to talk about a Tibetan plant and through out the conversation she noticed Tom slipping the chocolate chip cookies into the bin when Hammer wasn't looking. Why was he doing that? Would it have killed him to eat them? It's not like eating them would make him any less evil so what was the problem?

He spread the cherry cookies out onto the plate and picked one up. She expected him to slip it into the bin and she was momentarily shocked when he took a bite out of the cherry cookie. He quickly ate all the cookies then he kindly asked Hammer if he could have some more and Hermione's eyes widened in disbelief. Unscrewing the jar of cherry cookies he refilled his plate and talking to Hammer he started to hungrily munch on them. She had thought he was forcing himself to eat them for the sake of putting on a show for Hammer but if that was true he wouldn't have refilled his plate. So that meant he hadn't been lying when he said he liked cherry cookies. It was disturbing to know the dark lord liked eating cookies and even more stranger that he preferred cherry cookies. But what did he have against chocolate chip cookies and weren't cherries a bit girly compared to chocolate? Not that she would ever voice her opinion out aloud, the dark lord would probably kill her if she suggested he was being less masculine.

Xavian's question suddenly came to her mind and she found herself wondering about his sexuality. She'd never seen him stare at boys so he couldn't be queer and it was obvious he didn't like girls since he avoided the prettiest girls at Hogwarts. He charmed and talked to people when he needed to get something done but other than that he disliked being around anyone and preferred his own company. After observing him for many weeks she could conclude that he was the most anti-social person in the whole of Hogwarts and he hated human contact, male or female. At first she had thought it was the blood status but then she realised it didn't make a difference as he had reacted the same way to Slughorn's touch and Slughorn was a pureblood. Dumbledore had said Voldemort didn't even treat his death eaters as friends and he just saw them as slaves. According to Dumbledore he hated the emotion of love and saw it as a weakness. In the end the conclusion was simple, he was cold hearted and cruel. He liked being alone and only loved himself. While everyone wondered if Tom was queer or straight she knew he didn't fit into either category and after some thinking she arrived at a strange conclusion. He had to be asexual since he didn't like either sexes but people never thought of that option. It was human nature to desire sexual contact at some stage in their life but the dark lord seemed to be a special case, he didn't like any kind of human contact. She didn't understand how a person could survive without love or friendship but then again the dark lord wasn't a person at all. He was a monster hiding within a human shell and she had to slay it while it was still young so that it wouldn't grow up to devour the world. She continued to watch as he listened to Hammer talk and soon his plate was empty again.

"Thank you for showing me the plant Professor" he said setting the plate down. "I would stay longer but I have essays to write"

"Of you go then" Hammer said getting up and he turned towards the door. "Mr Riddle" she said making him turn back. "Would you like to take some with you?" she said lifting up the jar of cherry cookies.

"I would love to" Tom said smiling at her and she loaded the empty plates with cookies once more. Hermione tiptoed away from the door and quickly walked out the classroom. She hid behind a suit of armour close to the classroom door and shortly afterwards she watched Tom walk by holding a brown paper bag in one hand and a plate of cookies in the other. He had half a smile on his face and it looked like the dark lord was on cloud nine. Hammer suddenly stepped out the classroom and took out her wand.

"Snapdragon" Hammer said locking the door and Hermione realised it was a password. Hammer must have thought she was alone and said it out aloud. It was a good thing she had overheard the password otherwise she would never have gotten her hands on a flower. She waited until Hammer's footsteps faded then she came out her hiding place and pointed her wand at the classroom door.

"Snapdragon" she said unlocking the door. She rushed into the store room and lifted the cloth of the plant. She plucked a yellow flower and wrapping it with fresh parchment she placed it in her bag. She carefully put the cloth back on the plant and hurried outside. She reset the lock on the classroom door and making sure no one was watching she removed the disillusionment charm. She had just obtained a hard to get ingredient for her potion and she walked towards the heads quarters feeling happy.

"Miss Granger" A female voice called out and Hermione froze. Oh Merlin, what if she had been seen when she broke into the classroom? She slowly turned to find herself looking at a middle aged woman dressed in grey and she immediately recognised her as Madam Barnes from the library. "The books you requested arrived today" Madam Barnes said making her relax. "You could collect them now if you like" This was turning out to be a really good day for her. First the quidditch problem had worked itself out then she managed to get a Zulfitack flower and now the books she had really wanted to read were ready for her to take. She went down to the library to collect the books and Madam Barnes placed a pile of large books on the counter.

"Are you sure you can manage?" Madam Barnes said pushing the pile towards her. "You could split the pile up and take one up at a time"

"No its fine" she said picking up the heavy pile. She slightly swayed and carefully balancing the pile she walked out the library.

"Cynthia" a boy ahead of her yelled and as she walked nearer she recognised him as Longbottom. "Hurry up we're going to be late"

"Coming" Bones said appearing. "How long do we have to supervise them for?"

"Till eight" Longbottom said grabbing her by the hand.

"What a waste of time, they shouldn't have first year duelling clubs"

"Cheer up darling" Longbottom said kissing her hand. "At least we get to see them make a fool of themselves" Bones giggled and pulled her hand back. A few more steps later they turned into another corridor and disappeared from her sight. After some time she arrived at the heads quarters.

"Medusa" she said breathlessly and the door clicked unlocked. She pushed the door open with her elbow and stepped into the heads common room. Tom was sitting close to the fireplace in his green armchair and an empty plate was on his lap. He was staring into the flames unblinking and she noticed the brown paper bag sitting on the armrest of his chair. She kicked the door shut and she suddenly lost hold of the pile. The books crashed to the floor and some of them slide close to his armchair. He didn't seem to have heard anything and he continued to stare at the flames. She started to pick up the books and she walked closer to his armchair to pick up the remaining two. She rested the heavy book pile against one of her sides and she leaned down to pick up a book. The last fallen book was the closest to his armchair and she walked nearer. She leaned down once again and she suddenly lost her balance. The book pile toppled over and she reflexively spread her arms to keep herself from falling. She accidentally hit Tom's brown paper bag and it flew of the armrest. To her horror it landed into the fireplace and caught on fire. Tom jumped up making the plate fall and break into pieces. He tried to retrieve the bag but it was too late. A black mass was all that remained and fumes filled the air. Fear saturated Hermione and her heart beat speed up. The flowers he had stolen had been in the bag and she'd just destroyed them.

"You" he shouted pointing his wand and she jumped. He looked absolutely furious and it looked like he was going to kill her. Feeling the situation was too dangerous she decided to forget the rules and draw her wand. Before she could even touch it he summoned it non-verbally and blood drained from her face as she watched him close his hand around her wand. He started to throw dangerous spells at her and she ran trying to dodge them. The missed spells destroyed most of the room's furniture and she let out a scream as one of the spells burnt her hand. "Impedimenta" he shouted pointing at her running figure and the spell forced her to slow down. She screamed as he grabbed her by the hair and smashed her face into the stone wall. Her nose cracked spilling blood on the wall and her chin stung badly. Breathing through her mouth she started to cry and she let out another scream as he did it again. He pulled her back and threw her onto the floor. She tried to crawl away and he kicked her in the side. She fell to the floor with a cry and curled into a ball. He kicked at her legs and moaning in pain she tightly hugged herself.

"Sanguifervanna" he yelled and she let out a high pitched scream as the blood in her veins felt like molten lava. She continued to scream and tears streamed down her face. The pain was terrible and she savagely bit her lips drawing blood. He suddenly lifted the spell and she lay on the floor sobbing. "Ignissa" he hissed and she screamed once again. Her whole body felt like it was on fire and she repeatedly scratched the floor with her nails. He kept the spell trained on her and her throat went sore from screaming. After a long time he lifted the spell and crying loudly she looked up fearfully. She shrank back as she noticed the mad glint in his eyes and there was such anger on his face that it made his handsome features appear demonic. "Sanguiferrvanna" he shouted making her scream and fall to the floor once more. It was unlikely that anyone would come into the heads common room. Bones and Longbottom wouldn't arrive for hours and it didn't look like he was going to stop until he did her some real damage. After some time he lifted the spell and she lay on the floor crying. He grabbed her by the robes and dragged her across the floor. He pulled her into sitting position and the roaring flames of the fireplace met her eyes. "What you threw into the fire was a valuable thing?" he shouted burying his hand in her hair. "It was mine and no one destroys my things and gets away with it" he said in a low hissing voice. "How about I throw you into the fire" he shouted pushing her face closer to the fire place and she let out a frightened scream.

"I didn't mean to do it" she shouted struggling in his grasp and he pushed her face closer. "I didn't mean it" she shouted feeling seriously scared as he pulled her a bit closer. She whimpered and struggled as she felt a blast of boiling heat hit her face. "Please, I didn't mean it" she shouted felling absolutely terrified. He suddenly pulled her back and threw her onto the floor. She sat up and taking in the look on his face she froze. The crazy glint in his eyes had gone even worse and just like this morning she could see his resemblance to Voldemort. She suddenly felt more afraid than ever and slightly starting to shake she hugged herself. She knew there was a lot of anger in him from today's events. First he had been told he had to play quidditch then Xavian had suggested he was queer in front of the whole school, and his attempt to get out of quidditch had failed as well. The flowers and the cookies had lifted his spirits but whatever little joy he had gotten from them wasn't there anymore. She had made it all disappear and now he was going to take all his anger out on her.

What if he decided to shout Avada Kedavra? He knew she was an orphan that no one would miss. At least Myrtle had parents to put pressure on the headmaster and the ministry had carried out an investigation. But they can't have looked that hard if they believed Tom's cock and bull story about Hagrid's Acromantula being the killer. Didn't they realise Myrtle hadn't been bitten or eaten in any way? People just don't get petrified or drop dead from looking at an Acromantula but the ministry obviously didn't care as long as they could announce the case as solved. If he killed her no one would be pressuring the ministry and they would probably believe the first thing Tom said and close the case. She wasn't a great believer in God but she silently sent a prayer for God to keep her alive so she could cleanse the world from Voldemort. If he didn't kill her then she was sure he would use the cruciatus curse and she was dreading it. He had let her off other times but this time he so angry with her that she doubted he would pass up the opportunity. Being crucioed hurt like hell and it made you wish for death. She remembered what if felt like to be crucioed and she didn't want to experience the pain ever again. Waves of fear ran through her as he pointed his wand and she started to shake badly.

"It was an accident" she said tearfully. "I didn't mean to do it" he still had that crazed look on his face and he didn't seem to hear her. "It was an accident, I'm sorry" Was she really expecting the dark lord to show mercy? She was just wasting her time degrading herself like this but she was so scared she couldn't stop herself. "I'm sorry Riddle, it was an accident" she said sounding hysterical and tears flowed from her eyes. "I didn't mean to do it, it was an accident"

"Cruci--" he started.

"I'm sorry Riddle" Hermione shouted with a terrified expression and relief ran through her when he didn't complete the incantation. She saw an unsure expression flicker across his face but it suddenly disappeared and he was looked angry as ever. "Cruci--" he started again and she shut her eyes bracing herself for the curse but she didn't feel anything. Seconds later she fearfully opened her eyes to find him still pointing his wand but he didn't look so dangerous anymore. There was still anger on his face but the mad glints from his eyes were missing.

"I'm sorry Riddle, I'm really sorry" she said shakily in case he changed his mind and after a while all traces of anger banished from his face. "I'm sorry Riddle" she repeated with tears streaming down her face. "I'm so sorry" he suddenly lowered his wand and stared at her blankly.

"Get out of my sight" he suddenly shouted throwing her wand on the floor and she immediately jumped up. "Get out" he shouted throwing skin burning spells towards her and she ducked to avoid the spells. "Get out" she quickly grabbed her wand and bag. She started to run towards her room and he aimed spells at her moving figure. She managed to block them and she cried out as one of the spells hit her already burnt hand. He suddenly threw a large piece of broken furniture at her and she ran inside her room in time. She shut the door and she heard a loud thudding noise as it crashed into her door.

She sank to the floor and leaning against her door she started to cry. Her badly burnt hand was stinging. She muttered the healing charm and the burning stopped but the skin still remained unhealed. She rushed into the bathroom and looking in the mirror she fixed her broken nose. Her lips were torn and bloody. She wiped her mouth with tissue and muttered a spell to stop the blood flow then she stripped. She showered of the blood stains and put on fresh clothes. Her body ached all over and she drank some pain reliving potion. She dropped onto her bed and pressing her face into the pillow she started to cry.

She'd worked so hard to avoid situations like this but what happened earlier hadn't been under her control. Everything had been going so well until she accidentally burnt his flowers, but fate must have given her an extra sprinkling of luck when they pulled her through time. With the amount of anger he had in him, Merlin knew what he would have done if she hadn't gotten him to calm down by apologising. She felt really lucky to be alive and not have any serious injuries but from now on she would have to be extra carefully not to get onto the dark lords bad side, because she had a feeling the next time she did she wouldn't get so lucky again. She felt helpless and weak not fighting him back but she knew it was for the best. The dark lord couldn't know about her real duelling skills and she couldn't disobey him because he would then view her as a threat that he had to eliminate. She had to let him believe he was the one in control and there was nothing threatening him. That way she could easily kill him off and she wouldn't even have to worry about him suspecting her because in his eyes he was the one with absolute power. She hated letting him walk all over her but she was doing it for the mission and the mission was more important than anything.

She wiped away her tears and slid of the bed. She stared into the mirror and her injured lips came into view. She touched it gingerly and it stung. She held up her burnt hand and stared at the brown wrinkled skin. She couldn't heal them like a healer could and it wasn't because she wasn't good at magic spells, it was because she hadn't mastered healing magic properly. Healing magic wasn't taught at Hogwarts and it was a different branch of magic than normal magic. It took some skill to master and that was the reason why any witch or wizard couldn't become a healer by just learning incantations. It took years of training to become a healer and learning healing magic was also a part of auror training. She had started to learn some healing magic spells during the war and she had easily managed to stop blood flow and burning sensations but she hadn't been able to master the complex healing spells. Some of the complex ones she could half manage but she got stuck finishing it off. Before Tonks could teach her any further the final battle suddenly took place and here she was now pulled into the past.

Tom had healed her hand once and it had been a complex spell. She wondered how he had learnt healing magic so perfectly when it wasn't taught at Hogwarts but she wasn't surprised that he knew healing magic. The dark lord was always so knowledgeable and it was obvious he would seek to learn new things to better himself. She felt like going to Madam Whittaker but then she decided against it. Madam Whittaker would ask questions then she would probably make a fuss to keep her overnight and she couldn't afford to lose a night. She needed the time to sort things out and work on the broom cursing potion. She sat back on the bed and pulled her bag on her lap. She thought about her library books and she wondered if Tom had destroyed them or if they would be still lying there in the morning. She hoped they weren't damaged otherwise she would be in deep trouble with the librarian. Now she wished she had taken Madam Barne's advice and not carried the entire book pile but what was done was done. She removed a ball shaped scrunched up parchment from her bag and she unwrapped it to reveal the Zulfitack flower. She was a little closer to her goal and she stared at it feeling joy. She carefully stored it in a jar with a freezing charm and placed it inside her trunk. She took out her dark magic book on object cursing and sat on her bed.

She suddenly wondered why he hadn't crucioed her. He could have easily shouted crucio if he had wanted to but for some reason he hadn't. Why hadn't he? He couldn't have possibly felt sorry for her, could he? That couldn't be it, the dark lord didn't have compassion or mercy so then what had made him stop? Maybe her apologies had ruined his angry mood and put him off. The dark lord put off torturing, that just didn't sound right so what was the reason then? She thought and thought but she didn't come up with anything convincing other than the fact that she'd ruined his super angry mood. She was still alive and as long as she lived she wouldn't rest until she murdered the dark lord.

She removed the book mark and read the potion making section. She made a list of all the ingredients then she narrowed it down to the ingredients she knew Slughorn stored, and ones that she wasn't too sure about. In the end there were only two ingredients that she wasn't sure about and she placed the list in her bag. She searched for other spells in case she couldn't make the potion and she started to make notes of the pros and cons. There wasn't much time until the quidditch match and feeling determined to get rid of the dark lord Hermione read deep into the night.

**Thank you for all the reviews everyone. I have read every single one of them and e-cookies to those who liked my story so far. **

**I passed my Biomedical sciences degree and I'll be attending the graduation ceremony in November. Just didn't get the honours class I wanted but I'm still happy I passed. **

**I know there are people out there who don't like my story or my characterisation and I'll just say one thing to all my readers. My story is like Marmite, you either love it or you hate it. Remember that TV advert about Marmite where they used to say you either love it or you hate it? Sorry to those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about. **

**Hope anyone didn't mind that I made Tom love cherry cookies, sorry if that ruined the whole evil image but there is a story behind his preference of cookies and that will be revealed later in the story. **

**Please leave reviews and tell me what you think of this chapter. **

**Menschlichkeit – thank you for you lovely review. I loved the way you said my fiction is a manifestation of my ideas but the reason why I get so defensive is not because people are rejecting my story or my ideas. It's because they are actually misunderstanding it and I feel it necessary to explain the truth that they failed to see. **

**Hermione is strong and she is not unintelligent. It takes courage not to break down after what she's been through. It's also taking her a lot of effort to act weak and submissive with Tom when she's actually not. So far she only screwed up one class and she only differs by 3% to 4% in her marks compared to him. Tom recognises her as intelligent and that is why he has to work extra hard to please the professors and he gets mad when the professors chose her over him. **

**Hermione does have the skills and intelligence to kill him. Letum Sero was a hard to brew poison and she wouldn't have been able to brew it if she was so dumb. **

**I apologise for my grammar and spelling mistakes. I will try to write better but please understand I'm not a professional writer and my chapters will never be flawless. Once again, thank you for spending time and writing this review. **

**Not A Flame – Yes she is emotionally unstable and the war has made her that way. She can't help but cry when she remembers her past or when she feels down. I know she's been called a mublood before but she didn't lose control because Malfoy called her a mudblood. The word mudblood suddenly brought back all the memories of war and that was what made her lose control. There was a whole paragraph in that chapter explaining why the word mudblood had been more than just an insult to her. **

**Hermione is good at spell casting and Tom was a just a little faster than her. She would have successfully finished the spell if Malfoy hadn't blown it up in her face. Thank you for your review. **

**Shrikechan – she did stroke the creature in different ways. She stroked it faster, tried it with both hands and she even prodded it with her wand. It needed a really light and slow touch and but she didn't think that would be the same as stroking. She thought Tom was doing that because he disliked touching living things, it just didn't cross her mind that he was doing it to make the creature come out as she believed what it said in the books. Hermione is human and she is allowed to make errors sometimes. **

**Hermione isn't artistic and when she couldn't think of anything she looked around the room for ideas. Her flowers weren't bad, they just weren't good enough as Tom's. Thank you for your review. **

**IcyMistWhite – I didn't say I would commit suicide if people didn't like my fanfiction. I said I was feeling suicidal about other things in my life and that negative reviews put me down more. I just wanted people not to send me horrible reviews if they weren't going to explain my faults in a nice way or come up with a valid criticism. Thank you for your review. **


	27. Healed by the enemy

Hermione woke with her whole body aching in pain. Wishing Tom died a very painful death she forced herself out of bed and drank two vials of pain killing potion. She walked into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. She looked terrible, her lips were slightly swollen with dark bruises and her right hand had blisters. It hurt when she washed herself and she tried to avoid using her burnt hand as she changed into her school uniform. She glanced at the clock and mentally groaned. She had woken up late and breakfast was almost over but she had one hour free time so she didn't have to worry about being late for class. Feeling awfully hungry she searched in her bag and took out a pack of chocolate chip cookies. Her lips stung as she tried to eat them and she broke the biscuit into pieces to make it easier. She conjured a goblet and filled it with water. She accidentally picked it up with her right hand and she momentarily closed her eyes in pain. She quickly switched hands and trying not to brush it against her lips she slowly drank from the goblet.

She would have to go to the hospital wing to get healed and she started to think up suitable excuses for the injuries. After a while she had the answers and she was about to walk out of her room when she paused with her hand on the door knob. Right now she didn't feel like running into Tom and she took a peek outside. No one was in the common room and there wasn't a broken furniture in sight. He must have fixed everything when he's anger had cooled and she hoped he hadn't destroyed her books. She stepped outside and ran down the stairs. She found her books stacked in a neat pile on the table and they didn't look damaged. She flipped through the books just to make sure and all the pages were still intact. Thank Merlin, the books were okay. She had imagined all sorts of horrible things like being banned from the library and Dippet cutting of her allowance to pay for the damages. She split the pile in two and putting more strain on her left hand she carried them up to her room one at a time.

She stepped out of the heads quarters and started to walk towards the hospital wing. Something suddenly tapped her on the shoulder and she turned to find it was Susan.

"Why weren't you at breakfast?" Susan asked.

"I woke up late and by the time I got changed--"

"What the hell happened to your lips?" Susan interrupted and Hermione lowered her head feeling self conscious. She was about to tell Susan her made up answer but Susan started talking again. "I think I know what happened" Susan said excitedly. "Did Tom bite your lips of to prove himself after Xavian's accusation?" Susan said lowering her voice and Hermione looked up glaring at the girl. Why did Susan always have to come up with a twisted explanation for everything? She had bitten them to deal with the pain while Tom had tortured her. She hadn't gotten injured during some wild kissing session.

"No he didn't" she snapped. "How many times do I have to tell you? We're not involved like that"

"If you say so" Susan said rolling her eyes and Hermione started to angrily walk off.

"Hey Maya" Susan called running up to her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you angry" she continued to walk on ignoring Susan. "I'm sorry" Susan said looking apologetic. "Sorry a billion times" Her anger suddenly vanished at the girl. Susan was just being Susan and she probably couldn't even help it.

"It's alright" she said pausing.

"Are you going to the hospital wing?"

"Yeah"

"Me too, let's walk together" Susan said smiling at her.

"Okay" they both started to walk forward.

"You don't look ill" She said narrowing her eyes at Susan.

"There's nothing wrong with me, I'm going to see Xav" She'd temporarily forgotten about Xavian Potter but now she remembered. "You could say hello, he'd be pleased to see you"

"Is he okay?"

"Madam Whittaker said he could be out of the hospital wing by tomorrow" Susan said cheerfully. "You know, Tom got let of lightly. Xav told me, all he got was one month's detention with Slughorn"

"One month" She said disbelievingly. When she had attacked Malfoy she had gotten one year detention with Slughorn and she hadn't even hurt Malfoy that badly.

"I can't believe he picked a fight with Tom knowing that no students ever defeated him in a duel" Susan said waving her hands. "But then again love does weird things to people"

"What do you mean by love?" Hermione said turning to look at Susan with creased brows.

"You know Xav likes you" Oh Merlin, her suspicion was true. Xavian thought she fancied Tom and what happened yesterday was an insane act of jealously. "Well, he thinks you like Tom so he wanted to humiliate him in front of the whole school"

"I see" She suddenly felt guilty and it showed on her face.

"Don't feel bad though, this isn't the first time they've fought" She wasn't really surprised. After the way they had acted towards each other at the Halloween ball she had a feeling they hated each other before she came into the picture. "First year they used hex each other all the time in the corridors but in a couple of weeks Tom became unbeatable so Xav just gave up" Susan suddenly smiled at her. "So if it isn't Tom then who's the lucky guy that kissed you with such violent passion" Susan said in a dramatic voice and crossed her hands over her chest.

"There is no guy" she said moodily.

"So what happened to your lips?" Her made up excuses were firmly implanted in her mind and she answered without hesitation.

"I had a bad nightmare, I bit them in my sleep"

"That's terrible" Susan said patting her on the back. "You should get a dreamless sleep potion in case it happens again"

"I will" She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and she took in a sharp intake of breath as her hand stung. She had accidentally used her right hand again and she blew on it to make the stinging disappear.

"Your hand" Susan said pointing. "How did you burn it?"

"In potions yesterday, I accidentally touched the cauldron"

"You never mentioned" Susan said looking at her hand closely.

"I didn't realise until I got to my room"

"What, you never felt it?" Susan said looking at her disbelievingly.

"I did, I--er--I just didn't realise how bad it was until I looked at it" she hoped that sounded believable. Soon they arrived at the door of the hospital wing and they could hear lots of shouts and cries from the inside.

"Sounds like there's a whole class of injured people in there" Susan said turning the door handle. Hermione stepped in after Susan and it appeared to be packed with injured students covered in blood and grey slime. It was utter chaos in the room, people were crying and shouting and Madam Whittaker was yelling instructions. From the sizes of the students she could tell they were first years and she noticed Slughorn standing in a corner with a worried expression. "First years" Susan said crossing her arms. "Someone must have blown up something in potions"

"Horace I need more Seeze sap" she heard Madam Whittaker shout and Slughorn ran out the door. "Everyone stop panicking and sit on the benches" Madam Whittaker shouted pointing. "I assure you the injuries are not life threatening but your treatment will be delayed if you don't follow instructions" The mass of noisy students immediately moved towards the benches and Hermione noticed Crabbe and Xavian sleeping in their beds undisturbed. How could they sleep through so much noise? They must have been fed a strong sleeping potion. She suddenly noticed Turner's bed was empty and she wondered where he was. "Maya" Madam Whittaker said noticing her. "You won't believe the day I'm having" she said grabbing some bottles of the shelf. "Oh, hello Miss Brewer" she said noticing Susan at her side. "If you came to see Mr Potter I'm afraid you'll have to come back in the afternoon. He's still under the sleeping potion"

"Oh" Susan said with a disappointed expression.

"I've never had to deal with so many patients in my entire career at Hogwarts" Madam Whittaker said uncorking the bottles. "A first year thought it would be funny to drop some--" Madam Whittaker paused noticing Hermione's lips. "Oh Merlin, you need treatment as well" She sighed and poured the contents of the bottles in a medium sized cauldron. "Miss Brewer, could you take this to the headmaster's office" Madam Whittaker said grabbing an envelope from a bedside table and holding it towards Susan.

"Sure" Susan said taking the envelope. "See you later Maya" Susan gave her a brief hug. "Hope you make it out in time for divination" Susan called out as she left. That was one class Hermione wanted to completely miss. She would pick spending time in the hospital wing over divination any day, even if it was filled with hysterical first years. Madam Whittaker rummaged through a drawer and pulled out a brown packet. She suddenly turned and took a closer look at Hermione's lips.

"You're going to have to wait until I've seen all the first years" Madam Whittaker said turning back around and tearing open the packet.

"My hands burnt as well" Hermione said holding up her right hand with a guilty expression.

"How did all this happen?" Madam Whittaker said glancing at her hand as she poured some white powdery substance into the cauldron. "I'll understand if you want to keep the lips injury private" she said chuckling and stirring the cauldron.

"It's nothing like that" she said hastily realising that Madam Whittaker was drawing the same conclusion as Susan. "I had a bad nightmare, I did it in my sleep"

"Didn't you take a bottle of dreamless sleep potion the other day?" Madam Whittaker said turning to look at her.

"It didn't work, I think I've become immune to it" She wasn't lying. After her parents had died she had regularly taken the potion but after a couple of months it had stopped working and the nightmares had returned.

"Oh dear" Madam Whittaker said pouring the liquid in the cauldron into a huge bowl. "I'll try and make up a stronger version for you"

"Thanks"

"So what happened to your hand?" Madam Whittaker said waving her wand over the bowl and the liquid inside turned blue to white.

"In potions yesterday I accidentally touched it against the cauldron" Madam Whittaker levitated the huge bowl into the centre of the room.

"There are spoons in that dish" Madam Whittaker shouted pointing and all the first years immediately became quiet. "Everyone take two spoonful's of the potion" The first years all stood up at once and rushed to get a spoon. "Get into a straight line" Madam Whittaker shouted but the first years continued to crowd around struggling to get their hands on a spoon. "Oh well" Madam Whittaker mumbled. "As long as they drink the potion" Madam Whittaker suddenly turned and lifted Hermione's hand for closer inspection. "Hmm" Madam Whittaker said narrowing her eyes. "This looks like a deep burn, are you sure it was the cauldron?" She couldn't have Madam Whittaker realise it had been a dark spell and she wracked her brains for an explanation.

"Erm--I could have touched the flames at the bottom, I can't remember which part of the cauldron"

"That's possible" Madam Whittaker said releasing her hand. "Sorry to say I have to prioritise the bleeding first years"

"I don't mind waiting" Hopefully she would miss divination and she wouldn't even get into trouble because she had a valid reason.

"Do you want to sit over--" Madam Whittaker paused noticing all the chairs were occupied. "Just sit on one of the beds"

"Okay" Hermione walked to the unoccupied bed closest to the door and sat down near the head board. Most of the first years were now fighting to dip their spoons into the bowl and it looked like they could accidentally tip it over.

"Get back everyone" Madam Whittaker yelled. "Or you'll all be reported to your head of house" the students slowly moved back. "Get into a line like civilised people" the students slowly shuffled into a line. The hospital wing door opened and Slughorn came in carrying a large bottle.

"Are you alright Miss Granger?" Slughorn said noticing her.

"I'm fine, minor cuts and burns" she said waving her burnt hand and pointing at her lips.

"Wish you a speedy recovery" Slughorn said giving her a smile.

"Thank you sir" Slughorn walked up to Madam Whittaker and handed her the bottle. She poured the contents into a black bowl and added in some green powder. She waved her wand over the mixture and muttered an incantation.

"If you have drunk the potion then go up to Professor Slughorn and he will remove the slime. He will be using Seeze sap so take care not to rub it into your eyes" Madam Whittaker drew her wand. "Afterwards you will queue up near that wall" Madam Whittaker said pointing. "And I will heal you one at a time. I will not tolerate crowding like last--" the hospital wing door suddenly burst open and a levitating stretcher floated through accompanied with sounds of sobbing. "Not another one" Madam Whittaker cried out. The person levitating the stretcher stepped inside and Hermione sat up straighter when she realised it was Tom Riddle. He stared directly ahead and he didn't notice her presence. His face was completely expressionless and he glanced at the first years with mild interest before he lowered the stretcher to reveal Turner. "Mr Turner" Madam Whittaker said hurrying towards the boy. "Oh Merlin" Madam Whittaker levitated the boy onto a bed and made the stretcher vanish. The boy's old broken arm was still bandaged but his other arm was all bloody. Chills went down her spine as she took in the brutal way the boys arm had been broken. It was twisted at such an odd angle and she was sure she could make out a bone poking out near the elbow. Some of the first years screamed and Madam Whittaker started to cut away Turner's shirt and waving her wand she made a blue light appear on his arm.

"Merlin's beard" Slughorn said stepping closer. "Tom my boy, what happened?"

"I found him at the foot of a staircase" Tom said staring at Turner unblinking. "It's likely he tripped and because his other arm was already broken it must have been difficult for him to regain balance" Hermione knew that was a pack of lies. He had obviously broken Turner's other arm because he saw him as the reason for having to play quidditch and after everything that had happened last night he must be in a murderous mood. Hermione suddenly felt guilty for causing Turner pain but then she reminded herself it was for the greater good and Turner would eventually recover.

"Thank God you found him Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said making complex movements with her wand. "A major blood vessel has severed and I don't think any other student would have been able to stop the blood flow"

"It was my duty as head boy to protect a student" Tom said emotionlessly and a slight smile suddenly tugged at his lips but it vanished instantly.

"If only all the students were kind and caring like you" Madam Whittaker said uncorking a bottle.

"You speak to highly of me Madam" Tom said looking down at the floor. "I was doing what any other fellow human being would do" How did he manage to act like that? The way he was looking at the floor with that expression made him appear like a humble boy with everyone's best interest at heart. He always managed to say the right thing at the right moment and no one saw through his mask. If she hadn't known what he really was she would have fallen for the whole saint Tom Riddle character.

"Believe me when I say you're one of a kind Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said smiling at him. Yeah, he was definitely one of a kind just not the type they were thinking of.

"Someone talented as you deserves recognition" Slughorn said loudly. "I don't think any students done more for Hogwarts than you have"

"Thank you sir"

"Horace you better take care of the first years before the slime permanently sticks to their skin" Madam Whittaker said pointing towards the queue of students.

"I momentarily forgot" Slughorn said turning. "I'll get right to it"

"I'll be with you once I fix up Turner" Madam Whittaker said muttering more spells over the boys arm.

"Sir" Tom said making Slughorn turn. "Is that an explosion caused by the combination of velinick acid and poppy seed?"

"Yes is it is but I really shouldn't be surprised that you know the answer"

"Then don't forget to wear gloves sir"

"Right you are my boy" Slughorn said cheerfully. "We wouldn't want another casualty now would we?"

"Heavens no" Madam Whittaker muttered. Slughorn walked away towards the first years and Tom glued his eyes back on Turner. "Mr Turner, you said you were going to the toilet so how did this happen?" Madam Whittaker asked but the boy continued to cry. "Mr Turner?" The boy started to cry even harder and he suddenly looked at Tom with a terrified expression. "Mr Riddle says you tripped on the stairs, is that true?" The boy continued to cry but he didn't answer. Tom pulled out something from his pocket and Turner suddenly went quiet. Hermione realised Tom was holding a small owl feather and he slowly started to crush it between his thumb and finger.

"Perhaps you need help refreshing your memory? Tom said with coldness creeping into his voice. She knew what Tom was doing. He must have killed an owl in front of Turner and showing him the feather was his way of saying, your next if you tell the truth.

"I remember" Turner suddenly shouted. "I tripped on the stairs, it's all my fault. I tripped, I tripped" Turners voice suddenly broke into a sob and Tom let the feather fall to the floor.

"Calm down Mr Turner" Madam Whittaker started to apply brown cream on Turner's arm. "Mr Riddle could you do me a favour?" Madam Whittaker said pausing.

"Of course Madam" Tom said automatically.

"I normally wouldn't ask but my hands are full with the first years and now Mr Turner"

"I would be happy to help, what would you like me to do?"

"Could you heal Miss Granger for me?" Madam Whittaker said pointing and Tom turned to face her. Hermione froze and wished the earth would swallow her up. His blank expression instantly changed and he looked absolutely furious. He was obviously still angry with her from last night and she reminded herself to remain calm no matter what happened.

"I'll heal her" he said in a controlled voice and one of his hands slowly clenched into a fist.

"There's no need" she said jumping up from the bed. "I'll wait"

"Now Maya, there's nothing to be frightened of" Madam Whittaker said looking up from Turner's arm. "I assure you, Mr Riddle is excellent at healing and he has healed students before" Madam Whittaker winked at her then she went back to fixing Turner's arm and Hermione felt like strangling her. She didn't have life threatening injuries that required immediate attention but Madam Whittaker was obviously trying to play matchmaker by getting him to heal her. Tom slowly walked up to the bed glaring at her and she looked down at the floor. He paused at the foot of her bed and she slowly looked up to find he looked angry as ever. The hospital wing door suddenly opened and Dumbledore walked inside. Tom's face went blank and he turned sideways. He hatefully bore his eyes into Dumbledore and both of his hands momentarily clenched into fists.

"I just heard" Dumbledore said. "Are the first years okay?"

"Well, there're a bit shaken with large cuts" Madam Whittaker said looking back down at Turner's arm again. "But otherwise fine"

"The slime's hard to get of" Slughorn said trying to get it of a boy "I'm definitely not having first years make it next year"

"Never thought of you as a healer Horace" Dumbledore said chuckling.

"Well, desperate times call for desperate measures"

"I only have two hands" Madam Whittaker said. "If the rate of injuries keeps up then Hogwarts is going to have to employ another healer"

"What happened to Turner?" Dumbledore said walking closer.

"Broke his arm again, he's lucky Mr Riddle found him" Dumbledore looked at Tom with a grave expression and Tom stared back unblinking.

"Where did you find him Tom?" Dumbledore asked.

"At the foot of a staircase sir" Tom said without hesitation.

"Which staircase?"

"The one near the owlery" Dumbledore narrowed his eyes at him.

"Was there anyone else who saw you?"

"No sir" Tom said coldly.

"Albus stop asking the boy so many questions like his on trial for committing a crime" Slughorn said loudly. "All he did was help a student in need"

"I'm not saying he did anything wrong" Dumbledore said crossing his arms and he suddenly noticed Hermione. His eyes became fixed to her lips and then they flickered down to her burnt hand. Realising Dumbledore was staring at her, she turned sideways without trying to be obvious and Tom visibly tensed. Dumbledore looked back and forth between her and Tom with a calculating look and he was about to say something when the hospital wing door opened. Dippet stepped inside with an irritated expression.

"There you are Albus" Dippet said appearing out of breath. "Some men from the ministry arrived in my office and they want to see you" Hermione felt relieved watching Dumbledore step outside and Tom appeared more relaxed.

"Did you get the letter headmaster?" Madam Whittaker called out as Dippet turned to leave. "Don't worry, I owled all the parents to say they're safe and Horace I can't thank you enough for doing what you're clearly not paid to do"

"Don't worry headmaster" Slughorn said momentarily turning to look at Dippet.

"Tom" Dippet said suddenly noticing him. "I guess you're helping out, I should thank you to"

"There's no need sir, it's my duty as head boy" That was probably the killer line he used with all the staff so they didn't feel guilty for using his help but what they failed to notice was that he was conditioning their minds to favour him above the other students. If any of the staff ever bothered to read the heads hand book they would know that all of the things Tom did was way above the duties of a head boy.

"30 points to Slytherin" Dippet said beaming at him. "Miss Granger" he said acknowledging her presence. "Hope you get better soon" he said narrowing his eyes at her lips and she instinctively lowered her head feeling self conscious. Dippet left the hospital wing and Tom started to stare at her with an angry expression. Slughorn was busy with the first years and Madam Whittaker was still healing Turner while their presence at the far end of the room became temporarily forgotten. They continued to stare at each other for some time then he suddenly took a step forward making her jump. He drew his wand and started to walk closer. He paused in front of her at an arms length and her pulse quickened as he pointed his wand at her lips. It was obvious from the fury in his eyes that he wanted to kill her instead of heal her, and she knew he wouldn't do anything in front of people but the expression on his face was still frightening.

"Aequor aveho" he said tracing the air above her lips and she felt the skin on the surface of her lips tighten followed by a slight pulling sensation. He lowered his wand and turned towards a shelf near the wall. While he searched for something she touched her lips and the skin felt good as new but for some reason it still hurt. For a couple of seconds she was puzzled by this until she realised the injuries on the inside of her lips were still unhealed. Were the full effects of the healing spell meant to kick in after a couple of minutes or had he not realised there were cuts on the inside of her lips? Tom suddenly turned holding a pack of bandages and a dish. He placed the dish on the bed and waving his wand he filled it with water then he turned it into ice. For a while he stared at her hatefully then he grabbed the right sleeve of her robes and slammed her hand down on the bedside table. The palm of her hand stung from the impact and she glared at him. He took out a roll of bandage from the pack and grasping her sleeve once more he lifted her hand up. He looked back and forth then he unrolled a sheet of bandage and started to wrap her hand with it. What the hell was he doing? Why was he bandaging her hand before using the healing spell? She stared at him with a confused expression and he suddenly smiled at her coldly.

Her eyes widened as she realised what was going on. He was putting on a show of having healed her and no one would be the wiser. He had fixed the outside of her lips because it was visible but he must have deliberately left the inside of her lips unhealed. He didn't have to use any spells on her hand as the bandage covered everything so in the end it would appear as if he had healed all her injuries. He poked the tip of his wand against the burnt skin and it wasn't enough to burst the blisters but it was enough to cause pain. He looked at her with a murderous glint in his eyes and she glared back at him. That had been his way of warning her not to tell anyone and she expected him to say something threatening next. He continued to remain silent and she figured he must be so angry with her that he didn't want to speak to her. He let go of her sleeve and let her hand drop on the table. He pulled the sides of the bandage over the top of her hand and she noticed the way he was being so careful to avoid touching her.

Why did he treat her like she was infected with something deadly? He always sat two seats away from her in class and he never came any closer than an arms length unless he was hitting her. She suddenly realised something else, whenever he had to grab her or drag her somewhere he avoided directly touching her and he always held her by her clothing or her hair. Even when they were fighting she couldn't ever recall him using his bare hands to hold her by the wrist or any other body parts and now that she thought about it, it was the same with other people. She had seen him grab Malfoy and his gang by their collar or their hair but he never made any direct contact with them. She momentarily wondered why he didn't have a problem with touching people's hair if he was so against touching but then she figured that hair was technically dead with no feelings and it was probably the same thing as clothes in his eyes. What the hell was his problem? Why did he have to act so weirdly around people? Dumbledore did say he only loved himself but he didn't have to go to such extreme lengths to keep himself to himself. The dark lord probably thought he was too godly to be touched by mere mortals and she wondered what made him think he was above everyone else.

Tom walked back to the foot of the bed and she examined the material covering half of her hand. It was bandaged neatly and not a piece was sticking out. Like everything he did, it was perfectly done but it was too tight. The pressure was making her hand hurt and there was no doubt he had intentionally wrapped it like that. A knowing half smile crept onto his face and she stared at him hatefully.

"All done" Madam Whittaker said coming up.

"I've healed her to the best of my knowledge" Tom said turning towards Madam Whittaker. The best of his knowledge, what utter crap. He hadn't even bothered to heal her hand.

"Did you use the avexi avectum incantation for the lips?" Madam Whittaker said taking a closer look at Hermione.

"Yes" he said without hesitation. That was a lie, she clearly remembered him using a different incantation. He gave her a threatening look and she narrowed her eyes in hatred but she kept quiet.

"It was a deep burn so the spell will take about four to six hours then you can take off the bandage" Madam Whittaker said looking down at her hand.

"Okay" she said knowing that nothing was going to happen in four to six hours.

"Did you remember to use ice to reduce the spells after effects?" Madam Whittaker said turning towards Tom.

"I used ice" he said pointing at the dish on the bed. He had put it there as evidence to back up his lie and she wasn't surprised that he had planned everything from the beginning. He held her gaze for a couple of seconds and she stared back hatefully.

"Well, you've done a fine job Mr Riddle" Madam Whittaker said smiling at him

"Thank you Madam" he said looking at her again and a slight smile tugged at his lips.

"Maya, does anything still hurt" Madam Whittaker asked.

"No" she lied and she continued to stare at him hatefully. She wouldn't be able to get Madam Whittaker to actually heal her because it would expose him as a liar and he knew she wouldn't dare to do something like that. He had meant for her to suffer and she would for the sake of her mission.

"You two may leave" Madam Whittaker said stepping out of her way. "Thank you for helping Mr Riddle"

"You're welcome Madam" he said nodding his head slightly. With his long strides he managed to get to the door first and he held it open for her. She abruptly paused glaring at him and he stared at her with a blank expression. As if he hadn't done enough already, why did he have to put on his Mr gentleman act right now? She forced herself to step through the door and she hastily walked away trying to get as far away from him as possible.

She sat on her bed undoing the bandage and cursing Tom Riddle. She wrapped her hand again at a loser hold and she glanced at the clock. Divination was going to start in five minutes. What a useless class, she felt like skipping it but being head girl it would get her into serious trouble and so she couldn't. She slung her bag over her shoulder and grabbed her books. Her right hand hurt and she tipped the weight of the books more to the left. She couldn't wait to see his dead body lying on the ground and she hoped he died a slow agonising death. She left the heads quarters and started to walk down the corridor.

Hermione entered the smoke filled classroom and blinking rapidly she made her way towards her usual small circular table. She sat down and shortly afterwards Tom slid into the chair opposite her. He glared at her and she forced herself to look away. She felt like crucioing him for what he had done at the hospital wing and it took all her strength to restrain herself. After what happened last night she didn't want to ever get on his bad side and no matter what he said or did she was going to keep calm. It would all pay of in the end when she successfully killed him and getting rid of Voldemort was what mattered.

"Silence" the divinations professor shouted and the class become quiet. "We are going to try and open the inner eye once again" the professor said in a high pitched voice. Great, one more wasted hour on staring at a crystal. "But this time the crystal balls have been soaked in" the professor paused "Moon water" the professor said dramatically waving her hands. What the hell was moon water? She couldn't remember reading about it in her divinations text book. "Who can tell me what moon water is?" the professor asked and Tom immediately raised his hand. Hermione hated divination so much that she didn't bother reading any other book expect the specified textbook but Tom had obviously done a lot of background reading. He suddenly looked at her and he continued to stare at her with a blank expression. He was probably wondering why she hadn't raised her hand and even if she had known the answer she wouldn't have competed, because she didn't want to take the risk of sending him over the edge in case the professor picked her over him.

"Mr Riddle" the professor said making him look away.

"Water that has been placed in moonlight of a full moon for a whole night and kept away from daylight afterwards" he said putting his hand down.

"Correct, 10 points to Slytherin" the professor said smiling at him. "The lunar energies empower the tools of divination and assist in the opening of the inner eye" the professor said in a low dramatic voice and Hermione felt like shouting, you're talking crap. Honestly, it was just water. It didn't matter if it was bathed in moonlight or sunlight as far as she was concerned it was still water in the end. The professor waved her wand and crystal balls appeared at the centre of each table. Silence filled the room as everyone started to crystal gaze and Tom's eyes were already fixed to the crystal ball. This was such as waste of time. She could have been doing other things like writing her potions essay or gathering ingredients for the broom cursing potion. Her eyes rested on Tom for a couple of seconds then she looked away knowing it would anger him if she stared.

She looked down at the crystal ball and feeling tired she closed her eyes. Hermione started to think about the broom cursing potion. She had to brew it for two days and she could make it in her bathroom but there was a risk that a female student or a professor might find it while she was away. No, she couldn't make it there. She had to find a secure place that staff and student wouldn't have access to but she couldn't think of one. Should she just risk it and use her bathroom? No, she couldn't take any risks with her mission and she continued to search her brain. After a while the answer popped into her mind and she felt like smacking herself for not thinking of it earlier, the room of requirements was the perfect place. She opened her eyes and her heart jumped violently when she found Tom staring at her with an angry expression. Why was he looking at her like that? She had been on her best behaviour today and she hadn't said a word to him so why was he angry? For a moment she felt scared that he had looked into her mind but she knew it couldn't be true as she had the power to block him with occulumency. He must be still angry with her from last night and she felt annoyed that he didn't think the punishment she was going through was sufficient enough to pay for what she had done. It didn't look like he was going to forgive her anytime soon and she wondered if she had accidentally done something new to offend him but nothing came to her mind. Well, he was the dark lord and she had destroyed his Zulfitack flowers. It would probably take some time for his anger to cool and she hoped he would get over it soon. His expression suddenly went blank and he started to stare at the crystal ball again. Hermione relaxed and looked around the room feeling bored. Once in a while she found Tom staring at her with an angry expression and she couldn't help but feel worried. It was uncomfortable sitting so close to him when he was looking at her like that and she was glad when divination was over.

At lunchtime she decided to skip her meal. She rushed down to her room and using her left hand she placed the dark magic books on object cursing in her bag. She walked up to the seventh floor and paused in front of a tapestry. She looked back and forth to make sure no one was watching then she turned towards the blank wall.

'I need a room to brew a potion' she said loudly in her head and concentrating hard she paced back and forth. After a while the door of the room of requirements materialised and she stepped inside to find a perfect potions lab with all the right equipments. She took out the dark magic books and her list of ingredients for the broom cursing potion. She opened up the book and double checked to make sure she had listed all the ingredients correctly. She planned to steal the ingredients from Slughorn's stores tonight and there were two ingredients listed under the heading, may not find. Those ingredients were exclusively used in dark potions and she knew Hogwarts or Slughorn wouldn't stock them. She tapped her quill impatiently against the ingredients list trying to think of a way she could acquire the remaining two and she suddenly gasped in pain. Her right hand was hurting from holding the quill and she switched hands. She gingerly touched her bandaged hand and read more about the ingredients in the book. Both of them were a plant or derived from it and she had a feeling one of them might grow in the forbidden forest. But the other one was from somewhere exotic and obtaining it was looking hopeless. She stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder. She left everything else in the room as she knew it would be there when she came back again.

In her afternoon classes she was starving and she couldn't concentrate. Once in a while she glanced at her wrist watch counting down to dinner time but time seemed to move slowly. Holding the quill with her right hand was painful and writing with her left hand was proving difficult. Throughout the classes Tom had stared at her with an angry expression or given her hateful glances and she started to get a bad feeling that he might know about her plan to kill him, but she knew it was ridiculous the minute the idea entered her head. He was just having a hard time getting over her burning the flowers and knowing he had to play quidditch was probably making things more difficult for him. So far he hadn't said a word to her and she preferred to keep it that way to avoid arguments.

The last class of her day was transfiguration and she was dreading it. Dumbledore had seen her injuries in the hospital wing and she was afraid he might question her about it. Her occulumency shields could prevent him from looking into her mind but she wasn't strong enough to stop him from knowing when she lied. She knew he was suspicious of her after he had caught her lying numerous times and she didn't want to fuel his suspicions further but it looked unavoidable. Hermione forced herself to enter the classroom and made her way to the back. Tom was already seated and he was staring ahead unblinking. Dumbledore suddenly fixed them with a piercing gaze and Tom clenched both his hands into fists while she stared at fingernails feeling uncomfortable. Once everyone was seated Dumbledore introduced something known as double transformation. He demonstrated by transfiguring a needle into a sliver spoon and then the spoon into a silver goblet. Tom easily managed to do it in seconds while the rest of the class struggled after converting it into a sliver spoon and Hermione was stuck at the same stage herself. Gripping the wand with her right hand was painful and it killed her concentration but she didn't dare hold it with her left hand as Dumbledore would notice. After a while she started to get frustrated and she jabbed her wand at the spoon violently then she regretted it as her hand badly stung.

"Miss Granger" Dumbledore's voice said sounding close and she looked up startled. Fear flickered across her face and she quickly changed her expression to appear apologetic. Tom looked towards at her and Dumbledore with a blank expression and one of his hands clenched into a fist.

"I'm sorry Professor, I didn't mean to do that" she said avoiding his eyes.

"It's quite alright Miss Granger, some people have snapped their spoons in half" Dumbledore said smiling at her kindly. "Double transformation is difficult to master, I myself wasn't successful on the first attempt" He stared at her bandaged hand for a couple of seconds then he looked at Tom and Tom stared back at him boldly. She felt relieved when Dumbledore walked back to the front of the classroom and Tom started to give her a death glare. What was he getting so worked up about? She hadn't told on him. He must be pissed of that Dumbledore suspected he was the cause but it's not like Dumbledore could do anything if she didn't accuse him in the first place. She tried the spell again and she managed to successfully transform the spoon into a silver goblet. She looked around the room to find Tom and her were the only two people who had completed the double transformation. She couldn't help but feel pleased with herself and she was sure she would have done it sooner if the pain wasn't there. She noticed him staring at her goblet with a blank expression then he gave her a hateful glance and she looked down at the table to avoid his gaze.

At the end of class Dumbledore awarded them both equal house points and showed of their goblets. He dismissed the class and everyone started to pack and file out the classroom. Tom was already out the door and she suppressed a gasp of pain as she picked up her heavy text book. She quickly left the classroom feeling glad that Dumbledore hadn't asked any questions. She separated from the mass of students and turned into an empty corridor leading towards the heads quarters. "Miss Granger" she heard Dumbledore's voice call and she abruptly paused. She knew it was too good to be true, Dumbledore would never let her off without asking any questions and she didn't have a choice but to answer them. With her pulse racing she clutched her book tightly and turned to face him.

"Yes Professor" she said with a strained voice.

"I couldn't help noticing your injuries at the hospital wing" he said walking closer. "If you don't mind me asking what happened to your lips?" Dumbledore would know if she lied but there was no way she was going to tell him the truth besides he was already suspicious from her previous lies.

"I had a bad nightmare, I bit them in my sleep" she said avoiding his gaze and when Dumbledore didn't say anything she forced herself to look at him. He had a serious expression on his face and when he looked into her eyes she quickly looked back down.

"And your hand" he said with a heavy voice.

"I burnt it in potions yesterday" she said looking up again.

"I see" he said staring at her bandaged hand with a grave expression and he suddenly bore his eyes into her. She immediately looked down and took in a deep breath. "Well, I hope your hand heals soon" he said in a resigned voice and Hermione felt relieved when he turned to leave. She watched him walk away and when he was out of sight she turned and continued down the corridor. After a few seconds Tom Riddle stepped out of a class room nearby and she jumped startled. She gasped in pain as the weight of the book shifted to her right hand and she glared at him angrily. She doubted him being there was a coincident and he had obviously been eavesdropping on her conversation with Dumbledore. For a while he stared at her with a blank expression then he started to walk towards the heads quarters and she followed. Soon they both stood in front of Persephone and Hades painting but Persephone and Hades were missing from it. She was about to tap on the painting and call Persephone when Tom poked his wand into the painting muttering an incantation. To her surprise Persephone and Hades immediately appeared looking windswept. She didn't know there was a spell to summon portrait people back into their portrait and she wondered what the incantation was. Persephone and Hades looked momentarily confused then Hades looked annoyed and Persephone looked furious.

"Horrible boy" Persephone shouted. "I was in the middle of a conversation"

"Calm down darling" Hades said placing an arm around Persephone.

"It's your job to guard the door not wander off" Tom said coldly.

"I do have a life you know" Persephone shouted placing her hands on hips.

"You don't, you're a painting" Tom said sneering at her.

"How dare you" Persephone shouted aiming punches at him but her knuckles remained trapped within the painting.

"Enough of this" Tom roared jabbing his wand into the painting and Persephone and Hades backed away with expressions of fear. "Open the door"

"Password" Persephone whispered.

"Medusa" Tom said making the door open and he threw a spell at the painting. Persephone and Hades screamed and fled the painting before the spell hit them. She stepped inside after Tom and shut the door. He disappeared into his room slamming the door shut and she entered her room a few seconds later. She placed the heavy book on her table and sat on the bed. She slowly stroked her bandaged hand to find it was more painful than it had been in the morning. She had used the hand to write, cast spells and carry heavy books throughout the entire day so she wasn't really surprised and for minute she entertained herself by imagining Tom Riddle meeting his death in various grisly situations. There was still a long time left till dinner and she was starving. To keep herself occupied she started to do some research for her potions essay and once in a while she glanced at the clock hoping time would move faster.

At dinner time she mostly used her left hand to pick up things and she found the inside of her lips stung if she tried to eat or drink something. Now more than ever she wished she had mastered healing magic properly and she scrunched her eyes in pain as she placed another spoonful of hot food inside her mouth. She opened her eyes to find Tom staring at her and she glared back at him. He knew it was hurting her to eat and he was probably getting some sick pleasure from watching her like this. She looked away and picked up another spoonful. She was way too hungry and she didn't care how badly it was going to hurt. Trying to ignore the stinging of her lips she started to stuff her face with food and she swallowed spoon after spoon as quickly as she could.

"Maya, what the hells gotten into you?" Susan said looking at her.

"Hungry" she said with her mouthful.

"Not surprising since you missed breakfast and lunch" Susan said giving her a disapprovingly look and still busy eating Hermione nodded in response. "Guess what?" Susan suddenly said sounding excited.

"What?" she said spooning more food onto her plate.

"I've got this new picture book" Susan said raising an eyebrow. "You wanna come over later?" She knew what kind of picture book Susan was talking about and she had no desire to be looking at pornographic images with a bunch of giggling girls. She had better things to do like homework and planning the assassination of the dark lord.

"Can't I'm busy" Susan looked disappointed at her response.

"Oh come on Maya, just for five minutes"

"Sorry can't"

"They have a chapter on BDSM" Susan whispered. "I've heard Slytherin's like that kind of stuff"

"I'm not seeing a Slytherin" she said angrily knowing that Susan was referring to Tom and a few Ravenclaw's nearby looked at her curiously. She had no idea what BDSM was and she really didn't want to know about weird sexual practices.

"Okay, sorry" Susan said holding up a hand. "But can't you still come over"

"I have to write the potions essay, it's due tomorrow"

"How comes you left it till the last minute?"

"I started writing the herbology essay, I forgot the potions one was due sooner" she lied. The truth was she had been so busy with the murder planning that most of her homework time had been used up.

"Another time then" Susan said looking hopeful.

"Maybe" she said uncomfortably but she knew there was no way she was ever going to willingly view that picture book with Susan.

She sat in the heads common room writing her essay for potions and Tom sat close to the fireplace reading. Bones and Longbottom were whispering quietly in a corner and they were looking at a charms book. At first Hermione had thought they were discussing something class work related until she saw the full title, charms and decorations for weddings, when they lifted the book up higher. Looks like they were getting serious if they were discussing wedding decorations. She dipped her quill into ink and alternated between writing with her right hand and left hand. But she mostly tried to use her right hand as it was faster and neater. A couple of times she noticed Tom staring at her between his reading and being used to his stares she carried on writing without discomfort. Longbottom and Bones left when she was half way through writing her essay. The scratching of her quill filled the air as she continued to work in silence. When she finished her essay she re-read it and feeling satisfied she rolled it up. She looked up to find Tom wasn't sitting in his armchair anymore, instead he was standing near the fireplace staring at the flames and his book lay on the table. She put her things into her bag and placing the straps on her shoulder she started to walk up the stairs to her room.

"Granger" Tom said making her halt and with her heart racing she forced herself to turn around. He was standing sideways near the fireplace and his face was expressionless. "Come here" he said gesturing at the space in front of him. She gripped her bag tightly feeling scared. Why was he asking her to come down? Today she hadn't said or done anything to displease him and she hadn't told Dumbledore the truth, but maybe he was blaming her for Dumbledore suspecting him. Well, he was talking to her again but she didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing in this situation. She looked at his face for a clue but it was emotionless and his hands weren't clenched in fists. He didn't appear angry but the dark lord was hard to read and there was no way of knowing for sure. "Can't you understand simple instructions" he said in a colder voice. "Walk back down the stairs and stand here" he shouted pointing at the space in front of him and she pulled on the straps of her bag feeling more scared than ever. If she didn't obey then he would get very angry and she couldn't have that happen. She slowly walked down the stairs and he watched her every movement like a predator watched his prey. Merlin knew what he was planning to do, maybe he was regretting not crucioing her yesterday and he had decided to crucio her now.

Fear started to pool in her stomach as she walked closer and the hand gripping the straps of her bag was slightly shaking. "Stop" he said making her pause at an arms length from him. He drew his wand and her heart jumped violently. He stared at her for a while then he raised his wand hand and dropped it back to his side again. He did this one more time and an unsure expression flickered across his face then he suddenly pointed his wand at her. Hermione's eyes widened and blood drained from her face, any second now she was expecting him to shout crucio. He slowly moved his wand closer to her face and she watched its every move with her pulse racing. He lightly touched his wand onto her lips and she immediately drew back with a horrified expression. What the hell was he doing? "Don't move" he snapped making her jump and he took a step forward. He touched his wand onto her lips once again and she shivered in fear but she forced herself to remain still. "Part your lips" Did he actually say that or had she heard incorrectly. "Do I have to repeat myself?" he hissed making her flinch.

She hadn't heard incorrectly and he was probably going to use a torture spell that she wasn't familiar with, but she was glad he wasn't going to crucio her. She slightly parted her lips and she felt so scared she couldn't stop her bottom lip from trembling. "Avexi avectum" he said softly as he lightly traced the outline of her lips and she immediately recognised the incantation, it was the healing spell Madam Whittaker had mentioned. A tingling feeling developed on the inside and the outside of her lips then she felt a pulling sensation. She ran her tongue over the insides of her lips to find the injuries were gone and it no longer hurt. Tom stared at her for a while and she stared back at him with her mind too numb to think about what had just happened. He conjured a dish and filled it with ice then he placed it on the palm of his left hand. "Lift up your right hand" he suddenly said and she raised her hand feeling no longer afraid. "Evanesco" he said making the bandage vanish and a huge patch of brown wrinkled skin with slightly leaking blisters came into view. "Sanialtus" he said circling his wand over her hand three times and his forehead was creased in concentration. "Abstergo" he said flicking his wand and a blue light enveloped her whole hand. The blisters disappeared and the brown wrinkled skin became replaced by a shade of deep pink. Hermione suddenly felt burning heat all over her hand and grabbing her by the sleeve he thrust her hand deep into the dish of ice. She let out a gasp feeling the sudden coldness and relief spread through her as the burning stopped. After a while he pulled her hand out and it wasn't burning anymore but the skin was still pink. He made the dish of ice vanish and put his wand away. "Hold your hand up" she held up her hand once again and he pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket. He folded the square cloth into a triangle and taking great care not to touch her, he carefully tied it around half of her hand excluding her thumb. Tom picked up his book and silently walked up to his room leaving behind a confused Hermione. She slowly walked up to her room with her eyes fixed on the handkerchief wrapped hand and she was still finding it hard to believe that he had healed her.

She shut the bedroom door and dumped her bag on the floor. She touched her right hand to find it didn't hurt anymore and the pink skin would probably disappear in four to six hours like Madam Whittaker had said earlier. Why had he healed her? She didn't know why and the question was dominating her mind. He didn't benefit by healing her so why would he do it? Maybe he had done it as the professors would notice in the morning that her hand was still bandaged and it would reveal that he hadn't healed her. That had to be the reason why, he had healed her to save himself from being exposed as a liar so in the end it did benefit him. But he didn't have to heal her lips as no one would have noticed that so why did he bother then? She thought and thought but she couldn't find an answer to show how he benefited. After a while she gave up thinking about it. It didn't matter why and from his actions it looked like he wasn't angry at her anymore and she hoped she was right. Hermione lifted up her right hand and observed it more closely. The handkerchief covering her hand was plain white and she wondered if it had his initials or some sort of symbol like his last hankerchief. Feeling curious she lifted up one of the triangle ends and a snake sewn with green thread met her eyes. Above the head of the snake was the letter T and below its tail was the letter R. It obviously stood for Tom Riddle and the snake showed he was in Slytherin. Hermione suddenly felt dirty wearing lord Voldemort's handkerchief and she started to take it off. She dumped the handkerchief in her drawer and to protect her right hand she put on one of her winter gloves. She glanced at the clock and she decided to wait an hour before she went down to steal the ingredients for the broom cursing potion.

An hour later she put on her hooded cloak and sneaked out the heads common room. She walked down the corridor looking back and forth and she climbed down a couple of stairs. She was about to turn into another corridor when a sound made her stop and she grasped her wand. She was sure someone was in that corridor but at least no one had seen her. Who could it be? A professor, students like her wandering outside curfew or one of the heads patrolling. She heard the sound again and she was sure it was a low moan. What was going on and why could she hear sounds like that? She carefully snuck her head around the corner to take a peek and a couple kissing deeply came into her view. With the help of the dim light from a burning torch hanging on the wall she recognised who the couple were. It was Bones and Longbottom and they were meant to be patrolling tonight but it looked like they had something else on their minds. She had to go through that corridor to get to Slughorn's office and there was no other way. She waited for a while hoping Bones and Longbottom would move somewhere else and when she couldn't hear anymore moans she took a peak again but they were still tangled in each other. Longbottom pulled back and she thought they were going to leave but he suddenly shoved Bones against the wall. He pinned her down with his body weight and he started to kiss her neck making her moan loudly.

"Cynthia darling, you're going to get us caught" Longbottom whispered.

"Can't help it, with the things you do" Bones whispered weaving her fingers into his hair. Longbottom slid his hands under her blouse and Bones yelped in surprise.

"William no" she whispered removing his hands.

"Come on sugar" Longbottom attempted to touch her again but she batted his hands away. "You said everything above the waist was fine before marriage"

"Okay, I'll let you" Bones whispered looking down with a shy expression and Hermione felt like screaming in frustration. She had no desire to watch them touch up each other and she wondered why they couldn't move to a broom closet or some other place. "But not here" Bones whispered pushing him away and Hermione breathed out in relief.

"How about that empty classroom" Longbottom whispered pointing down the corridor.

"Okay" Bones whispered back and he put his arms around her waist as they walked towards it.

"They have desks that we could----" Longbottom started.

"Don't you get ideas" Bones cut in. They soon disappeared into the classroom and Hermione hurried down the corridor. She paused in front of Slughorn's office and looking back and forth to make sure no one was watching she muttered the password. She stepped inside and took out the list of ingredients from her pocket. She removed the available ingredients from Slughorn's store room and resetting the password she sneaked out again.

She walked up to the seventh floor and wishing exactly the same thing as before she entered the room of requirements. Everything she had left at lunchtime was still there and she placed the bundle of stolen ingredients on a desk. She took out the ingredients list and she stared at the two items under the heading, may not find. She had been right, Slughorn didn't have them and one of them was called silver bell flower. She had once overheard Snape asking Hagrid to pick silver bell flowers and she hoped they still grew in the forbidden forest in the past. She took a look at the picture of the flower in the dark magic book and read the description. It wouldn't be hard to recognise but she had no desire to go down to the forbidden forest at the dead of night, especially after the way the hyenas had attacked her. Going there early in the morning before everyone woke up seemed much safer and she shut the book yawning.

She left the room of requirements and sneaked back into the heads quarters. She entered her room and started to change into her nightclothes and it was weird having a gloved hand while she did that. She decided to go down to the forbidden forest in the morning and she set her alarm clock at 5 am. She slid into her bed feeling really tired and soon she was fast asleep.

**Thank you for the reviews everyone and I'm sorry for the late update. I did write up this chapter earlier but then I didn't like it and I re-wrote the whole chapter again. I have a feeling my writing doesn't flow properly in this chapter and I'm sorry if it's hard to read. **

**Ekaterina has made a lovely comic strip of chapter 16 and there are other awesome pictures from the story. The live journal link is on my profile page, please check out her work and scroll down once you load the webpage. **

**Please leave me reviews and I'll try and update faster. **


	28. Shocking sight

The ringing of her alarm clock shook her awake and she turned it off. Sleep heavily tugged at her eyelids and she decided to spend ten more minutes in bed. She woke hours later and stared at the clock in disbelief. It was 8.45 am and she had fifteen minutes till class started. How could she have let herself sleep like that? She was supposed to have gone down to the forbidden forest to search for the silver bell flowers. Swearing she stumbled out of bed and ran into the bathroom. She pulled of the glove from her right hand to find it was completely healed and she started to brush her teeth. Five minutes later she stepped out of her room fully dressed and she ran down to the great hall. There was hardly anyone there and quickly stuffed some food into her mouth then she drained a goblet of water. Glancing at her wristwatch she rushed out the great hall and she started to run towards the potion's dungeon.

She entered the classroom out of breath and she was glad to find Slughorn hadn't started yet. She walked up to her table and clutching the back of her chair she took in deep breaths. She suddenly noticed Tom looking at her and his face was expressionless. Thank Merlin he wasn't staring at her angrily anymore, did that mean he had gotten over her burning the Zulfitack flowers? He was a master at concealing emotions and she wasn't really sure but she didn't want to risk getting crucioed by him ever again. From now on she decided to work extra hard not to anger him and hopefully everything would work out. Once her breathing steadied she sat down and Slughorn started the class. When it was time to make a potion together she watched Tom carefully but he didn't bang objects or cut ingredients with more force than necessary. He definitely didn't seem angry but she still wasn't sure.

"You should add 4 drops of bats blood instead of 3" he suddenly said and all her worry vanished. Not only was he talking to her, he was telling her things again and that must mean he had forgiven her. He started to explain why 4 drops was better and she couldn't help but feel a little happy, although she didn't like to admit it she had missed his explanations. Whenever he made changes he told her why he was doing it and she continued to listen with great interest. She had a dozen questions in her mind but she didn't dare interrupt him in case she angered him. Ten minutes before class ended Slughorn went around the room grading everyone's potion and as usual they received an outstanding.

"Attention class" Slughorn said walking back to the front of the room and everyone became quiet. "As you all know, this is your last year" Slughorn said in a serious tone. "To pass this subject you are all required to work on a project which will be worth 40% of your total marks." A few people brought out their quills and started making a note of this. "This years project is to invent a potion for preventing werewolf transformation" the whole class burst into worried whispers and a flicker of concern even passed over Tom's face while Hermione had an expression of panic.

"Prevent werewolf transformation" Hermione whispered running her hands through her hair and Tom was staring at Slughorn with creased brows.

"Calm down everyone" Slughorn shouted silencing the class. "You are not required to actually invent a potion that works" Everyone looked relieved at his words. Hermione removed her hands from her hair and Tom's face was blank again. "As long as you justify why you think your theoretical potion might work and you carry out some practical work to prove the properties of the ingredients, then you will still be able to gain full marks." The scratching of quills filled the air as most people wrote this down. "You are required to work with your potions partner and the project is due on the 4th of December." Hermione and Tom immediately turned to look at each other. He didn't look pleased to be working with her and the feeling was mutual. "The essay on fairy tears is due today, put them in there as you leave" Slughorn said pointing at a box on his desk. "Class dismissed" Slughorn said making a gesture with his hand and the classroom became noisy once again. She opened her bag and she started to search for her essay.

"Granger" Tom said making her look at him again. "Listen to me carefully" he said glaring at her. "I will set the time and place of our meetings. You will show up and you will do actual work. Is that understood?" Stupid controlling psycho, he was giving her an order like he owned her and she felt a spark of anger but she forced herself to keep calm.

"Understood" she said nodding her head and he wordlessly walked away to the front of the classroom. She resumed searching for her essay and a few seconds later she pulled out the scroll. She threw it into the box on Slughorn's desk and left the potions dungeon.

She had fifteen minutes break before her next class started and she decided quickly visit the room of requirements. She ran up to the seventh floor and looking back and forth to make sure no one was watching she entered the room. She opened up the dark magic book and started to skim through the pages. The second ingredient she needed for the broom cursing potion was a plant called Solanum nicrum but the book hardly had any information on it. She let out a frustrated sigh and put the book down. She glanced at her wristwatch to find she had five minutes to get to the defence against the dark arts classroom and grabbing her bag she rushed out the door. She ran down many stairs and through a couple of corridors before arriving at the classroom out of breath. She stepped inside breathing heavily and she was glad to find Professor Galatea Merrythought hadn't arrived yet. Clutching her side she made her way towards her usual table and quickly sat down. Tom stared at her with a blank expression and she bowed her head as she waited for her breathing to return to normal.

"Granger" a voice said and she looked up to find Shiv Patil standing in front of her table.

"Hey Patil" she said with a slightly out of breath voice.

"You haven't brought any cookies lately" Shiv said with a mock sad expression.

"I've been busy, otherwise I would have visited" It had been a while and thinking about the biscuits made her mouth water.

"I've got new ones with 50% less fat" Shiv said pulling out a pack. "You can have this one for free" he said dumping the pack on the table.

"Thanks" she called out as Shiv turned to leave. Tom was staring at the pack of cookies with a murderous look and knowing that he hated chocolate chip cookies she hastily stuffed the pack into her bag. Merrythought suddenly entered the classroom and everyone immediately stopped talking. Merrythought was an old woman but she didn't appear frail or weak, instead she radiated power and strength. She was a strict looking woman and everything about her commanded respect. Her eyes were the scariest thing about her and when she looked at you it felt like she was looking right into your soul. Hermione had found Merrythought's stares uncomfortable on her first class but she had gotten used to it over time. Tom sat up straighter and looked at Merrythought with what Hermione recognised as respect and admiration. She had seen him occasionally look at Slughorn like that but for Merrythought it was always there. Looks like his two favourite professors were Slughorn and Merrythought only he had more respect for Merrythought. Defence against the dark arts was the only class where Hermione came dangerously close to getting the same mark as Tom and it had become her favourite subject. The only annoying thing was the way Merrythought always favoured him over her.

"We are going to start working on containing dark curses" Merrythought said drawing her wand. "But in order to do that you must know the spells of containment and the type of curses it should be used with" Merrythought waved her wand at the blackboard and a list of numbered incantations appeared. "Who can tell me what number fourteen does?" Tom immediately raised his hand and Hermione slowly followed knowing she had a slim chance.

"Tom" Merrythought said and she put her hand down resisting the urge to shout at Merrythought for playing favourites.

At lunchtime she was starving and she decided to quickly eat something then go down to the library to find more information about Solanum nicrum. She rushed into the great hall and she started to swallow her food at a fast pace.

"Maya slow down" Susan said. "We don't have class for another 40 minutes"

"Need to go to the library" she said in between swallowing her food.

"Why?"

"I want to read up on something" she said with her mouthful.

"Why do you take school work so seriously?"

"I just do" she said standing up and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

"Can you come over later? I've got some--"

"Sorry I can't" she shouted as she ran out the great hall. She felt bad for neglecting Susan but making the broom cursing potion was far more important.

In the library Hermione searched shelf after shelf but she couldn't find a single book mentioning the plant. She was about to give up when a very large dusty book at the top of the shelf caught her eye and she had a feeling it would contain information about Solanum nicrum. She tried to reach it but it was too high up. She tried to levitate it down with a spell and the book hovered in the air for a few seconds before settling back onto the shelf. It was just too heavy and her spell wasn't strong enough. Feeling frustrated she stamped her feet and let out a string of swear words.

"Stop making so much noise" a voice said making her freeze and she instantly recognised whose voice it was. "The library is supposed to be a quiet place for studying" She slowly turned towards the direction of the voice to find it was coming from the back of the library. It was dark down there and she could make out a tall dark shape walking towards her. "And some of us are trying to study" Tom said stepping out of the shadows with an irritated look on his face. Recognising her as the noise maker the irritation on his face quickly became replaced with anger and Hermione's pulse quickened. No, this couldn't be happening. She'd worked really hard to keep him calm and it all couldn't end with a bad fight in the library. She had thought she was the only one here, how was she supposed to know the dark lord would be hiding in the shadows? "It's you" he said clenching his hands into fists and she took a step back with a worried expression.

"I'm sorry Riddle" she said hoping he would calm down. "I didn't realise you were in here otherwise I wouldn't have made so much noise" After a few tense seconds his expression softened and he unclenched his hands. She felt so relieved he wasn't angry anymore and she waited for him to leave but he kept on staring at her expressionlessly. After a while she started to feel uncomfortable but she didn't dare to tell him to go away. He suddenly looked up and following his gaze she realised he was looking at the book she had tried to remove. "Move, I'll get it for you" he said walking closer to the shelf and she moved out the way with her heart racing. How did he know she wanted that book? He had been at the back of the library the whole time and he couldn't have seen her levitating it. Being tall he easily lifted the heavy book of the shelf and a loud thud echoed through the room as he dumped it on the table.

"How did you know I wanted that one?" She said in a low controlled voice.

"Isn't it obvious Granger?" he said with an annoyed expression and she nodded her head to say no. "It had less dust on it" Her worry immediately vanished at his words. Of course it would be less dusty after all her levitation attempts and she felt kind of stupid for not realising but it was hard not to get paranoid when it came to the dark lord. She looked down at the large book and the faded title read, 669 herbs and plants used in potions. She suddenly noticed Tom staring at book and she started to feel panicky. Did he know what she was trying to do? Of course he didn't, it was just a potions book and she could be looking up something for an essay or the potions project. It didn't give him any indication whatsoever that she was trying to kill him and she should stop being so paranoid all the time. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"Thanks Riddle" she said pulling the heavy book towards her. "I mean thank you Riddle" she added hastily remembering that he didn't like the shortened version. He held her gaze for a couple of seconds then he silently disappeared to the back of the library and she sat down feeling relieved. She opened up the book at the back to find the index section but there wasn't one. Either the book was written at a time when index sections didn't exist or someone had torn it out but the author could also not have bothered with one. This was going to be much harder than she had thought and she flipped the book to open it at the front. She skimmed through page after page as rapidly as she could and nearly at the end of lunch she found Solanum nicrum. She quickly read the page and she wasn't pleased with the information. Solanum nicrum didn't grow in Britain and that meant it wouldn't be growing in the forbidden forest. She glared at the book and tapped her fingers on the table. How was she supposed to get hold of it if Hogwarts didn't have it? Maybe I could get it from outside of Hogwarts she thought pausing her fingers. A shop in Hogsmeade might sell it but the problem was how was she going to get to Hogsmeade when she didn't have permission to go out on Hogsmeade weekends? She would have to break out of Hogwarts and that was looking impossible until she remembered something. Thank Merlin Fred and George had discovered a secret way out. She could get to the cellar in Honey dukes through the statue of the one eyed witch and then all she had to do was leave the shop undetected. If everything went as planned the whole of Hogsmeade would be at her fingertips but first she decided to get the silver bell flower from the forbidden forest. She would have brought it but she didn't think she would have enough money to buy both the ingredients and Solanum nicrum was probably going to be expensive.

During her afternoon classes Tom was in one of his moods again. He snapped at her and insulted her when she made even the slightest of mistakes and she forced herself to remain clam. He could say all the things he wanted but she wasn't going to provoke him to hit her. She wondered why he was behaving like this and she was certain she wasn't the cause of it.

At 7.30 pm Hermione sat in the heads common room writing an essay for divination. It was on scrying with water and as far as she was concerned she was wasting her time writing about absolute drivel. The sound of a door being opened made her look up and Hermione raised an eyebrow when she saw Bones coming out of Longbottom's room. Bones's usual neat hair was messy and her robes were blatantly worn inside out. She hastily tried to enter her room and her face went bright red when she noticed Hermione staring at her.

"It's not--not what you think Granger" Bones said stuttering. "I was erm--erm" she quickly pulled something out from her pocket. "I was borrowing a quill, mine broke"

"It's okay Bones, you don't have to prove yourself" Yeah right, borrowing a quill. After the way she had seen them in the corridor she could imagine what they had been doing in Longbottom's bedroom.

"Well-erm-Goodnight" Bones said turning to open her door. "And I never meant that stuff about you being evil" she suddenly said in a high pitched voice. Clever girl Bones, Hermione could see what she was trying to do. Bones wanted to get on her good side so she wouldn't tell anyone in case she knew more than she was letting on.

"Don't worry I won't tell anyone" she said bluntly and Bones's expression grew worried.

"I--erm--we-" Bones appeared lost for words.

"It's okay Bones" she said closing her inkpot.

"We haven't slept together" Bones burst out.

"I never said you did" Although she didn't approve she wasn't the kind of person to spread nasty rumours if they hadn't been able to wait until their wedding night.

"No you didn't" Bones mumbled to herself. "Good night Granger" she said with a strained voice and she quickly disappeared into her room.

"Good night Bones" she called out and she started to re-read her essay with a smile. When she didn't find any mistakes she rolled up the parchment and placed in her bag. Feeling tired she leaned back into her red armchair but she couldn't get herself to relax. Something didn't feel right and she looked around the room wondering what it could be. Hermione realised what it was when her eyes fell on an empty green armchair close to the fireplace. Tom was missing and he usually sat reading or writing at the same times as her. Although they hardly talked she had gotten used to his presence and now that he wasn't here it felt odd. Where could he be? He hadn't been in a good mood lately and he was probably sulking in his bedroom or torturing owls.

She stood up placing the straps of her bag on her shoulder and she was about to go up to her room when the common room door was violently thrown open. Tom Riddle stepped inside and she gasped loudly taking in his appearance. She started to stare at him open mouthed and she blinked on purpose several times. He was wearing the Slytherin quidditch uniform and his right hand held a very worn out looking broomstick but his clothes weren't holding Hermione captivated, it was his hair and face. His hair that was always neatly combed was messy and most of it was covering his left eye. The skin of his face that was always deathly pale was flushed pink and there was sweat on his forehead. She had never imagined she would see Tom looking so messy and so human. To see him like that was absolutely shocking.

"Stop staring at me like that?" he shouted making her jump. He let go of the broomstick and it crashed to the floor with clatter. He quickly drew his wand with a furious expression and she took a step back looking frightened. "Do you think it's amusing that I have to waste my time doing something useless like quidditch?" he said in low rage filled voice. "Are you having a laugh at me inside that thick skull of yours?" he shouted pointing his wand and her heart violently jumped. She hadn't meant to be nasty by gasping or staring at him like that but he obviously thought otherwise.

"I don't find it funny Riddle" she said with a shaky voice and she wondered if she had said the right thing when he still seemed angry as ever. "I hate quidditch, remember I had no idea who Jack Allen was?" she said in a high pitched voice and she took another step back. His expression suddenly went blank but his wand was still pointed at her and Hermione hoped to God he would calm down. After a few seconds he slowly lowered his wand and relief spread through her. He grabbed his broomstick and disappeared into his room loudly slamming the door shut. Hermione ran into her room a second later, she had no desire to be hanging around in case the dark lord came out again. She dumped her bag on her desk and sat on her bed. Tom must have learnt he had quidditch practice at the end of lunch and that was the reason why he had been in a foul mood all afternoon. The image of the way he had looked a minute ago was burned into her mind and she still found it hard to get over the way his hair hadn't been neat. It just didn't seem normal to see Tom Riddle not looking perfect because everything about him was always perfect or as close to perfect as you can get.

She suddenly wondered about something, why hadn't he gotten changed in the quidditch changing rooms like all the other players? She knew Tom didn't like getting close to people so the most likely answer was he didn't want to be in a room full of half naked guys that were standing too close to him, and as far as she was concerned that was further evidence that he was asexual because if he was queer he surely would have changed in the changing room in the hope of seeing some bare male bodies. She wondered why anyone would want to be so alone and friendless with only power as their companion but then again the dark lord wasn't a normal person. He was a power hungry monster wearing a human shell and she was going to destroy him soon.

She decided to skip dinner to sleep early and she changed into her nightclothes, then she set her alarm clock at 5 am with the hope that the extra sleep would make sure she didn't fall asleep upon waking. She needed to find the silver bell flower and tomorrow she would make sure she went down to the forbidden forest no matter how sleepy she was feeling. Hermione blew out the candles and creeping under her quilt she closed her eyes.

**Thank you for all the reviews everyone. I tried to update faster but I'm depressed right now and it makes writing harder when you're crying your eyes out all the time. **

**I've spent hours trying to make this chapter perfect but I couldn't make all the sentences flow properly. So I'm sorry if some of the paragraphs or words seemed forced or if it isn't fluent enough. But I think it's been too long I haven't updated ****and my mind isn't working to make it any better. Plus, I think I'm going to go insane if I have to read through this chapter one more time. I've read it so many times when I was correcting it that I've memorised this chapter word for word. **

**I've made a picture of Tom feeding the Kevatrix and its up on my live journal. The link is on my profile page and please leave comments to tell me what you think. (If you can't remember what a Kevatrix is then see chapter 23) **

**HashBrwn – Tom's abusive because it's in his character but he only dose it when things don't go his way or when someone make him angry. The romance will come into this story later and all the unanswered questions will be answered as the story progresses. Also, Hermione dose not like the abuse and she just tolerates it so she can easily kill him without him getting suspicious. Thank you for the review. **

**Please leave me reviews everyone. The more reviews I get the more inspired I feel to write and I promise the next chapter is going to be longer than this one. **


	29. He can fly?

**Hello my lovely readers, if I have any left. I am so sorry for not updating for so long and I hope the length of this chapter makes up for it. It's the longest chapter I have ever written and I have tried my best to perfect it. **

Hermione sat up and turned off her alarm clock. It was 5 am, time to go down to the forbidden forest. She forced herself to get out of bed and stumbled into the bathroom. Later she got dressed in her room and despite the castle's heating she felt really cold. Deciding to wear a jumper she searched for the school uniform one but she couldn't find it. After carefully looking through her entire trunk she swore loudly and banged the lid shut. Her Hogwarts uniform had mysteriously appeared, and since Dippet had ordered a house elf to buy all her things she was sure the same elf had been responsible for providing it. The creature must have forgotten to buy her the jumper and to make things worse it wasn't just the school uniform one. The house elf hadn't brought her any other jumper or something similar and the only large clothing for warmth was her outdoor cloak.

Damn it, the weather had been warmer back in September and she hadn't realised. How could the stupid house elf think to buy her useless things like cosmetics and jewellery but not a jumper? She'd have to suffer until she purchased one through mail order, or she could complain to Dippet and he'd probably rectify the situation.

Oh God, the house elf. No, she couldn't tell Dippet as the elf would surely be told off or given information about it. She knew the way their kind reacted to the knowledge of having provided bad service and she didn't want Dippet's house elf was to severely harm itself or commit suicide. She already had two elves deaths on her hands and she didn't need another one. First Dobby had scarified himself to help her, Ron and Harry escape from Malfoy Manor and then she'd accidentally killed Lolly in her attempt to murder Tom. Guilt made her chest tighten as she recalled the elf's dying moments and her eyes watered. Hermione remembered the time she had setup S.P.E.W and reminiscing about Ron's reaction she weakly smiled. Back then if someone had told her she'd murder a house elf she wouldn't have believed it but now to slay her enemies she was almost capable of anything. The war had changed her. Watching the people she loved being killed and tortured had shaken her beliefs to the core and changed her views on dark magic and murder. She no longer hesitated to use unforgivables when she thought it was justified and killing was right in her eyes as long as the person was absolute evil.

She wondered what the past Hermione would think of the person she'd become. She'd probably be horrified but then again the past Hermione hadn't been through what she'd been through so it wouldn't be a fair judgement. It's easy to say, I would have done the right thing, until you're faced with the suffering of the worst kind. At times like that you have to do whatever's necessary to gain the upper hand, not look at what's right and wrong. She wasn't the first person in the world to think like that otherwise the ministry wouldn't have allowed the aurors to use unforgiveables on death eaters. As much as people don't like to admit it, sometimes for the sake of the greater good you have to embrace evil.A smile bloomed on her face at the irony of the statement but in her situation it was very true. She had to do something evil as murder to get rid of Tom Riddle so that the greater good of removing lord Voldemort could be achieved and she was determined to succeed. Feeling confident Hermione put on her hooded cloak and then she crept out of the heads quarters.

It was dark outside the castle and the temperature was freezing. She'd already cast a warming spell but it hadn't made a huge difference. A blast of icy wind suddenly hit her and she tightened the hold on her cloak. The ground of the forbidden forest was frosty and golden brown autumn leaves were scattered all over. With the help of her lit wand she navigated her way around and began searching for the silver bell flowers. As she progressed inside she glimpsed a few animals and she recognised most of them from textbooks or care of magical creatures. Over time the rising sun made the darkness vanish and she extinguished her wand light. Her feet were aching and Hermione decided to take a break. She paused and squatted down before glancing at her wristwatch to find it was 7 am. Merlin, it's nearly been two hours and she still hadn't found the flowers. Fingers crossed she'd find them before 8 o'clock, otherwise she'd have to come back here and she really didn't want to in this weather. Standing straight again she continued searching and as she moved closer to the heart of the forest the trees became larger and wilder.

Sharp hissing sounds suddenly filled the air and Hermione froze before raising her wand. She looked left and right but she couldn't see the source. It abruptly stopped and she was about to resume walking when the hissing returned. This time it was much louder and it seemed to be coming from a huge tree on her left. She hastily cast a disillusionment charm and in couple of seconds she was completely camouflaged. With her pulse quickening she turned towards the tree and edged closer to it. What the hell was she doing? It could be a dangerous animal, the safe thing was to get as far away as possible but she couldn't help her curiosity. She paused in front of the trunk and looked up and down. All she could see was overcrowded branches and thick muddy roots so where was the sound-it was coming from behind the tree. Hermione placed her hands against the aging bark and cautiously poked her head out. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw the back of a black cloaked figure. It suddenly turned sideways making half of its face visible and her heart painfully lurched as she recognised Tom Riddle.

She couldn't hear the hissing anymore and he was standing still. All of a sudden the inhuman sounds began again and she saw his lips move in sync. This time he didn't take a pause and he was making different sounds with the letters S, L and H dominating his speech. The dark lord was obviously speaking parseltongue but it didn't sound like anything she'd heard before. His tone seemed to have a hypnotic quality, and he's vocal cords produced the noises with such unnatural ease that in comparison Harry's parseltongue was forced and mechanical. To her horror she found Tom's language of snakes pleasant to her ears. She felt disgusted with herself but a part of her couldn't stop savouring the sounds leaving his lips. How comes Harry had never had that effect? Being the actual heir of Slytherin Tom must have inherited the ability to speak it perfectly while Harry had received an echo of it from Voldemort's Horcrux. Still,this was so wrong. She shouldn't like hearing him speak parseltongue. For Merlin's sake, he was the dark lord and she couldn't like anything about him. Tom's voice took on a commanding tone and the change snapped her out of her fixation. What the hell? No, she hadn't enjoyed listening to it. She'd never heard a parselmouth speak like that and it had just taken her by surprise. That's all it was, there was nothing more to it.

The dark lord was looking down and following his vision she noticed a snake slithering towards him. It suddenly stood up erect and Tom got on his knees. He held something towards the snake and after squinting her eyes she realised it was a glass vial. The scaly creature threateningly swayed back and forth and let out high pitched hisses. His parseltongue became loud and harsh and Hermione almost winced from the assault on her ears. With a low hiss the snake opened its mouth to reveal two fangs and it wagged its forked tongue before lowering its head over the vial. Then reptile spat into it several times and the glass container filled with dark liquid. Hissing the snake sank down and as he got back on his feet it slid away. Tom corked the vial and pulling it inside his cloak he hid it on his person.

Why was he out here early in the morning collecting snake venom? It was mainly used in dark potions and knowing the heir of Slytherin he was probably experimenting with potion recipes from the restricted section. As soon as he left she could start looking for the flowers again. Watching him she waited and he continued to remain standing as he was. After a while she started to get annoyed and she wondered why he wasn't moving.

Tom suddenly outstretched his arms and closed his eyes. The wind blew his cloak violently around his thin frame but he didn't move a muscle. What in the name of Merlin was he doing? The way he was standing in that scarecrow pose made it appear as if he was trying to fly. Hermione mentally laughed and her lips stretched into a smile. Honestly, Tom Riddle was crazy if he thought he was going to soar into the air without a broomstick. She suddenly remembered something disturbing and the smile wiped off her face. Lord Voldemort had flown in the sky unsupported and if his older self had managed then that meant Tom was really going to fly.

Knots began to form in her stomach and she felt a wave of nausea. Didn't that mean her murder plan wouldn't work? When the broomstick threw him off he would start flying instead of falling to his death. Oh, God. She'd spent so much time planning everything and it had all been for nothing. Hermione took in a deep breath but it didn't make her feel any better. Okay, maybe she'd jumped to a conclusion and was panicking over something that wasn't even true. Voldemort had been able to fly but without proof she shouldn't assume Tom could automatically do the same. It must take years of practice to gain an ability like that and he wouldn't be standing there like a statue if he'd already mastered it. So as long as he couldn't fly she'd be able to kill him and there was nothing to worry suddenly levitated an inch of the ground and all her previous fears returned full force. From the side his face appeared to be creased in concentration and as he moved higher up she held back a gasp. Merlin's beard, any second now he was going to start flying with ease and her murder plan would fail for the third time without her having put it into motion.

All of a sudden he crashed to the ground and relief washed through her. Hissing the dark lord got up and dusted his clothes before resuming his pose. After about a minute he was still standing there and she continued to watch with a pleased expression. Well, he certainly wasn't going to fly any time soon and that meant her idea was going to work. Smirking she was about to turn away when something caught her eyes. A few steps ahead of Tom a purple coloured plant was growing and grey shapes hung from it in abundance. Hermione felt overjoyed as she recognised the silver bell flowers, so many of them were in full bloom and she only needed one. Leaning her upper body against the tree trunk she patiently waited for him to leave. If only I had Harry's invisibility cloak, she thought with a mental sigh.

She watched Tom levitate a few inches and it didn't take very long before he dropped again. He jumped up hissing and she had a feeling he was swearing or cursing in parseltongue. He attempted twice more and each time he'd fallen he'd gotten up with an angry hiss. As he prepared to try once more she resisted the urge to laugh out loud, for some reason it was quite funny watching him repeatedly levitate, fall and then break out in harsh hisses. The dark lord rose into the air for the fifth time and watching him hover she eagerly awaited his crash landing. Instead of dropping he moved up a few inches and she raised an eyebrow. It was more out of surprise than worry, she knew being able to levitate mere inches wouldn't be enough to save one's self if they were to be dropped from the sky.

Something white suddenly ran into the clearing and she recognised it as a magical creature called Soolpava. Its body had a shiny appearance and it somewhat resembled a squirrel. The creature noisily scuttled towards the head boy and a second later he fell. Squeaking in fright the Soolpava started to run the other way and he got on all fours with a high pitched hiss. Hermione smiled toothily finding it hilarious, the creature had obviously made him lose concentration and the dark lord's animalistic behaviour was highly amusing. She half expected him to chase after it on his hands and knees when he pulled out his wand.

"Avada Kedavra" Tom shouted. Blinding green light hit the Soolpava and it dropped dead. Her smiling expression transformed into a horrified stare and her pulse quickened. Tom stood up and curling one of his hands into a fist he walked up to the unmoving creature. He looked down at it in distaste before kicking it into the air and the carcass landed next to the purple plant. He stepped and turned on the space the Soolpava had occupied, and then he started to walk away with his cloak billowing in the winds.

When she thought it was safe to come out she walked into the clearing and moved towards the silver bell plant. Trying to avoid looking at the dead animal Hermione quickly plucked a flower and in her haste she dropped it. She reflexively looked down and by the time she realised her mistake it was too late. The Soolpava's glassy eyes stared back at her and she tried not to but she couldn't stop remembering. The eyes of her lifeless loved ones had been like that, unmoving and seeming to be made of marble and no amount of tears could bring back the lively spark in them. With watery eyes she forced herself to look away and picked up the fallen flower. After placing a freezing charm on it she put it in her pocket and then she began to leave the forbidden forest.

Back in her room she hid the silver bell flower in her trunk. She walked up to the mirror and smiling at herself she took of her cloak. Now she only needed Solanum nicrum before she could start making the potion and she decided to get it from Hogsmeade sometime today. Hermione got into bed and closed her eyes but sleep wouldn't come to her. With a sigh she sat up and glanced at the cloak. There was fifteen minutes left till breakfast time and if she'd have to wake up that soon she was better off staying up. Suddenly feeling very hungry she took out the free pack of cookies Shiv had given her, they weren't healthy to eat for breakfast but she was too ravenous to care. Munching on the biscuits Hermione summoned a book and started to read.

The minute the clock said it was breakfast time she grabbed her bag and ran out the room. Even though she'd had the cookies she felt starved and she was sure all that walking in the forest was to blame. Hermione rushed inside the great hall and then abruptly came to a halt. No one was here, where was everyone? What a dumb question, just because she'd gotten washed and dressed at the crack of dawn didn't mean everyone else had. She was just too early, there was nothing to be alarmed about. She made her way to the Ravenclaw table and snatched a toast. By the time she'd sat down several bites had been taken out of it and as she finished off the rest she eyed a plate of egg omelettes. Should she have that next or the bowl of porridge behind it? On second thought, she really needed to drink some water. While drinking deeply from a goblet she looked up and then she coughed and splattered water all over herself as she realised she wasn't alone.

Tom Riddle was sitting at the Slytherin table and he was watching her. Lowering her eyes she set down the goblet and with a feeling of unease she patted herself dry. Then she dragged the bowl of porridge towards with the thought that something warm and filling would calm her. As she raised the spoon to her lips she sneaked a glance at the Slytherin table and found his eyes still on her. Looking away she swallowed a few mouthfuls of porridge but it didn't make her feel any better. Merlin, this was so uncomfortable and disturbing. As crazy as it sounded she could almost feel him looking at her, and being used to his stares it wasn't the staring that was bothering her. It was his eyes, his face was expressionless as usual but his eyes were a different story. There was a sort of intensity in them, it was like nothing else mattered and she was this interesting thing that he had to watch. Hoping he'd lost interest Hermione looked at him again and found his eyes still glued to her, only this time it was more unsettling as he was eating at the same time. If she'd known she'd be all alone with the dark lord and subjected to this she wouldn't have come down so early.

What on earth was holding his attention like this? Her appearance must have surprised him. At this time he was probably used to being the only one here, so he had to be trying to use legilimency to know why she'd arrived well before everyone else. In that case he was welcome to stare at her all he wanted, he wouldn't be getting past her occulumency shields anytime soon. Hermione looked back down and feeling a little relaxed she started to eat. A sudden thought made her pause with the spoon halfway to her mouth. What if he was still angry at her from yesterday? She hadn't meant to be nasty when she'd stared at him in his quidditch uniform, she'd just been shocked by his appearance.

She set down the piece of silver cutlery and bravely looked into his eyes. Was that anger? It didn't seem like it but she couldn't be certain when it came to the dark lord. After all the effort she'd put in to keep him calm was she really back to square one? Tom's watchful eyes made her feel uneasy again and she looked down at her bowl of gooey whiteness with a worried expression. Soon other students began arriving and feeling a little better by their distraction she ate more of her porridge.

"You're early" Susan said as she sat near her. "Why weren't you at dinner yesterday?"

"I was feeling tired, thought I'd get extra sleep" Hermione said sneaking a glance of Tom and she wasn't surprised to find he was still watching her.

"You shouldn't do that, it's not healthy"

"Yes healer Susan" she said mockingly and Susan made a face.

"Guess what?" Susan said excitedly.

"What?" she said with her mouthful.

"It's Friday and there's no class tomorrow" Susan squealed.

"Crap its Friday" Hermione said creasing her brows.

"What's wrong?"

"I have detention with Slughorn" She said gloomily.

"Cheer up" Susan said patting her on the back. "At least its Saturday tomorrow"

"Actually, detentions not that bad" she said. "Slughorn's great company when he isn't droning on about famous people" she continued with a roll of her eyes. "I just hate losing valuable study time"

"When you keep getting outstanding's I don't know why you worry" Susan said shaking her head.

"There's always room for improvement" she mumbled thinking of Tom's grades.

"Hey Susie" Xavian's voice sounded and they both looked up. He appeared recovered and there wasn't a bandage in sight.

"Xav, shouldn't you be lying in bed?" Susan said with a stern expression.

"I don't have to anymore, just taking potions now" he said patting a bulge on his trouser pocket and the sound of colliding glass followed. "Madam Whittaker said it's good for me to walk and here I am gracing you with my presence" Xavian said spreading his arms.

"Stop being so bloody dramatic or did your head get injured as well?" Susan said rolling her eyes.

"Says the queen of drama" Xavian said pulling a face. "Wonder what that say's about your head?"

"There's nothing wrong with my head, if I was dumb would I be in Ravenclaw?" she said pointing at the eagle on her uniform.

"The fact that you can manage to get an outstanding when you spend all your day gossiping is the sole reason the hat put you there"

"Hey, that's not the sole reason" she said raising her voice. "I'm actually intelligent"

"Okay, I take that back" Xavian said raising a hand. "After all, it takes a certain degree of cleverness to possess the personality of an airhead and the intellect of a mind much superior" he finished with a laugh.

"Get lost, Potter" Susan said angrily.

"Merlin, you're addressing me by my family name" Xavian said putting his hands on his heart. "I'm so sorry, I didn't think you'd take it so seriously"

"What you said was horrible" she said cutting her eyes at him.

"Oh, come on Susie"

"Don't ever talk to me" she said pointing her finger.

"Sorry a thousand times" he said with a pleading expression. "I'll buy you that new book you wanted,-what was it called?"

"I've already got the book"

"Then I'll get you-"

"Don't bother" she cut it sharply.

"But-"

"Fine, you're forgiven" Susan said with a sudden defeated tone.

"So glad to be friends again with the high and mighty, Susan" he said bowing down to her.

"Cut the crap, Xav, people are staring at us" she hissed.

"As you wish" Xavian said standing back straight. "Move over" he said gesturing with his hand and Susan shifted right next to Hermione. "The other way Susie, I want to sit between two of my friends" the Gryffindor said smiling in Hermione's direction and she immediately looked down at her food. Oh God, she didn't want to sit next to Xavian. She tried to catch Susan's eyes to let her know she wasn't comfortable with this but her efforts proved futile. The space beside her became vacated and soon Xavian occupied it looking like a cat that got the cream.

Hermione stirred her porridge feeling really uncomfortable. This was ten times worse than Tom's strange staring and speaking of the dark lord, was he still watching her? She looked towards the Slytherin table and was startled to find the head boy's face wearing an expression of loathing. Merlin, he was definitely angry at her from yesterday. Wait, his eyes weren't on her. They were focused a little beyond her left and that meant he was looking at Xavian. Thank, God, she wasn't the object of his current hatred. It was understandable that the Gryffindor would be sine he'd called the dark lord queer in front of the whole school.

"Alex, Andy" Xavian suddenly called out. "Over here" he said waving his hand and two boys in Gryffindor robes started to walk towards the table. As they sat in front of her a flash of something familiar made her look away from the Slytherin table and fix her gaze on them. One of the boys had red hair and freckles. She stopped blinking and stared at him. It was, Ron. She leaned forward with a longing look and she wanted to tell him how much she'd missed him. She opened and closed her mouth trying to form the words but she was too overcome with emotion. Susan loudly cleared her throat and she snapped back to reality. How could it be Ron when he was dead? That boy was not, Ron, he just resembled him. Feeling overwhelmed with sadness she drew back and her eyes slightly watered. She couldn't burst into tears in front of everyone, she had to get a hold of herself and with that thought she blinked on purpose a couple of times. She suddenly realised six pairs of eyes were staring at her and the red haired boy was looking down at the table with his cheeks blushing pink.

"Taken" Susan whispered grinning at her, and as Hermione realised what was being insinuated she wished the earth would swallow her up. She didn't need to be told in front of everyone the boy was taken because she hadn't wanted him in the first place.

"Stop it Susie" Xavian said sounding pissed off. "You're embarrassing her with your overactive imagination"

"Hardly any imagination needed when you can see everything with your eyes" Susan drawled. The Ron look-alike's blush deepened and the other boy in their group was trying not to laugh.

"No, it's nothing like that" Hermione said weakly.

"If you say so" she said sounding unconvinced.

"Ignore Susie" Xavian said putting his hand in front of her face. "We all know she's a delusional romantic"

"If anyone's deluded and thinking of romance it's you" she said pushing his hand away.

"So not true" he said with a laugh that sounded nervous.

"Really, maybe I should-"

"Maya" he said interrupting Susan with a loud voice, and realising it was her fake name Hermione reluctantly turned her head to look at him. "Let me introduce my friends" he said breaking eye contact and as he faced forward she noticed he was blushing. Oh great, she thought sarcastically. He may call her a friend but he was definitely seeing her in a different light. "This is Alexander Weasley**-**" Xavian said pointing at the red head and hearing the Weasley name she took in a sharp intake of breath. "-and he's Andrew Smith" he continued with his hand indicating the other boy.

"That's our new friend, Maya Granger" Susan said pointing with her thumb.

"Pleased to meet you" Hermione said with a slight smile and both boys nodded their heads in acknowledgement.

"Hey, I was going to say that" Xavian said grabbing Susan's thumb.

"Remember cutting me off" she said pulling it out of his grasp.

"That wasn't an interruption, you literally stole the words from my mouth"

"I always get people back with interest" Susan said smiling widely.

"Couldn't you have spared the sick" he said with a fake cough.

"No rest for the wicked" Susan said standing up. "I'll be back in five minutes" she said turning to leave.

"Where're you going?"

"Gonna talk to my girls" she said looking over her shoulder before walking off towards the Gryffindor table.

Xavian started talking to his friends and from the corner of her eye Hermione saw him frequently glance at her. She felt more uncomfortable in Susan's absence and hoping to appear unapproachable she busied herself with eating. As she added extra dollops of porridge to her bowl she looked up and her eyes lingered on Alexander. He looked so much like Ron it was uncanny but she couldn't remember his name being mentioned in her time. He could have been a distant relative since the Weasley's tended to have large families, or he could have died before starting a family and therefore forgotten over time. Still, wouldn't the family tree mention his-?

"So Maya" Xavian said interrupting her thoughts. "Aren't you going to enquire about my health?" he asked in a pretend sad tone. "I did recently come out of the hospital wing"

"It must have slipped my mind" she said with a false apologetic voice and she forced herself to look at him. "How are you?" she asked in a tone that she hoped didn't sound completely uncaring.

"I'll live" Xavian said winking at her and acting to have a coughing fit she faced forward. Something touched her on the back and Hermione froze.

"You okay" he said and as she felt a rubbing sensation she realised it was Xavian's hand. Crap, that certainly backfired.

"I'm fine" she said trying to brush him off and hoping he'd get the hint.

"You sure" Xavian said sliding his hand further down and out of her reach.

"I'm fine, thank you" Hermione said with a slightly hostile tone and the pressure on her back disappeared.

"Woah, what was that?" Susan's voice sounded and Hermione noticed Alexander and Andrew exchange a look. "Don't think I didn't see because of the distance" she said excitedly as she sat down. Tom must have witnessed it too, Hermione thought looking in his direction and she found the dark lord staring at her unblinking. His face was blank as always and his hand appeared to be paused in the process of turning a page of a book.

"Before you start, Susie" Xavian said defensively. "You should know she was almost choking and I was helping her with the purest of intentions" He'd meant well but she had a feeling his actions had been tainted by his want for her.

"He's not lying" Andrew said.

"I was kind of choking" Hermione said looking away from the Slytherin table.

"It's true" Alexander said. "There was nothing improper"

"I see" Susan said with a disappointed voice. "Hey, you all wanna know something" she said sounding excited again.

"Go on then gossip queen" Xavian said. "Who got together with whom or did someone break up?"

"It's nothing like that" she said gesturing with her hand. "There's a new shop opening in Hogsmeade and they're keeping what they're gonna sell a secret" she finished in a high pitched voice.

"That's crazy" Xavian said with a laugh.

"How in the name of Merlin does that promote your business?" Alexander wondered out loud.

"It's the mystery factor" Andrew answered. "It'll make their shop known and draw curious crowds on the first day"

"We all have to go" Susan said sounding enthusiastic.

"It's definitely working on, Susie" Xavian said giggling and Susan glared at him. "Fine, I'll come" he said sounding serious again and a smile slowly etched onto her face. "I have something to tell you all" Xavian suddenly said mimicking Susan's voice and Andrew and Alexander laughed.

"That's not funny" Susan snapped.

"Couldn't help it" Xavian said smiling and she lightly smacked him on the head. "I actually do have something to tell" he said leaning away from her and the spoon dropped out of Hermione's hand as his shoulder banged into her. "Sorry" Xavian said moving away and giving her an apologetic glance.

"It's okay" Hermione said picking up the spoon and forcing her lips into a slight smile. She didn't know if that'd been intentional or not, and so she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.

"Tell us then" Susan demanded. "And don't miss out on the details" she added excitedly.

"Not that kind of thing, Susie" Xavian said frowning at her. "Must you always link everything to sex related things? The Ravenclaw's that had overheard the word sex looked mortified and Alexander and Andrew appeared uncomfortable.

"Don't say the S word out aloud" Susan whispered angrily.

"I wasn't intending to" Xavian whispered back. "It just slipped out"

"Stop whispering, people are getting suspicious" Alexander whispered while tilting his head towards the students with scandalised expressions.

"I don't think you should read the N.M.W books" Andrew said loudly as he sprinkled salt onto his egg omelette. "The pictures might lead to temptation" he continued with his cheeks turning pink.

"I wasn't planning to" Xavian said blushing. "She was just telling me a few titles"

"I saw the titles in a magazine" Susan said hurriedly. "I've never read one" As the group began to eat in silence Hermione wondered what N.M.W stood for. The book was definitely about sex and it must be well known if people recognised it by initials the alone. When they were no longer the centre of attention Susan poked Xavian with a fork.

"Ouch" he said rubbing the top of his hand.

"I was telling you the titles" Susan hissed. "Do you know what people will think?" she said aiming for him again.

"I'm sorry" Xavian said holding his hands up. "I was under pressure"

"And you" she said pointing the fork at Andrew. "What were you thinking?"

"Damage control" Andrew said. "It was the safest way out without everyone thinking we've committed the sin of fornification" he said lowering his voice.

"Lose the fork, its attracting attention" Alexander said looking uneasy. "I'd like to leave this table with my reputation and honour intact"

"I think it's rusty" Susan said loudly before setting the fork down. "Let's forget the last five minutes happened" she said lowering her voice. "So, what did you want to tell us?" Susan said nudging Xavian with her elbow.

"Oh yeah" Xavian said sitting up straighter. "I secretly watched-"

"Nothing vulgar" Susan interrupted whispering.

"- the Slytherin team practice" he continued with a roll of his eyes. "Riddle was absolutely rubbish, he's going to be more occupied with staying in the air than catching the snitch"

"Stop exaggerating" She said crossing her arms. "We all know you hate him"

"You'll see for yourself" Xavian said looking smug. "A first year can do better" Finally, something he's not good at Hermione thought feeling pleased. If he was that bad then no wonder he'd gotten so mad at her for simply staring at him in his quidditch uniform.

"Something could've been wrong with his broomstick" Susan said defensively.

"If there was then Malfoy wouldn't have flown on it like an expert while demonstrating to Riddle the great" he finished with a dramatic tone.

"His greatness must have felt tiny when he couldn't best his fellow Slytherin's" Alexander said grinning and Andrew laughed.

"Good one" Xavian said giving him the thumbs up.

"He'll get better with practice" Susan said looking at him disapprovingly.

"Time isn't a luxury he has and while we're on the subject" Xavian said smiling widely. "I swear Riddle's broomstick is so old it could be placed in a museum as an antique" he finished bursting into laughter and others in the group followed but Hermione didn't find it funny. "He's had the same bag since first year" he wheezed out. "Someone told me he uses magic just to hold it together" They all laughed again and she felt a spark of anger. "Have you seen the state of his shoes?" Xavian said breathlessly. "The leathers-"

"Stop it" Hermione snapped and silence descended on the group as they all looked at her.

"I don't see why we shouldn't laugh at Riddle" Xavian said raising an eyebrow. "Haven't you always said you don't have feelings for him" he continued with an icy look and she glared at him.

"Xav" Susan said with a warning tone and Alexander and Andrew whispered something to each other.

"Or was that all make believe?" he added sneering at her.

"I don't care for Riddle" she said angrily and she slammed her spoon into the bowl.

"Then why are you defending him?" Xavian said accusingly and she found she couldn't answer straight away. A part of her didn't care if they laughed at the dark lord but she couldn't ignore the other half that made her feel otherwise. "Should I repeat that?" he said nastily. "It'll give you more time to think up an answer"

"Xav, drop it" Susan hissed.

"It's not right to make fun of someone just because they're poor" Hermione said acidly, finally replying.

"Oh, that" Xavian said breaking eye contact. "You're a good person, Maya," he said looking at her again and his expression was apologetic. "But as far as I'm concerned that rule doesn't apply to Riddle" he continued with a hate filled voice. "You haven't been here long enough to know what he's really like" Hermione knew how evil Tom was but she couldn't get herself to agree that it was okay to laugh at him for being poor.

"Riddle isn't as nice as he pretends to be" Alexander said. "I've seen it"

"He's the most dangerous student at Hogwarts" Andrew said leaning forward. "Two years ago he killed a girl in Ravenclaw" he said lowering his voice.

"That's a rumour, Andy" Susan said loudly. "He didn't kill anyone"

"I say he did" Xavian said hotly. "How convenient he should be the one to catch Hagrid with the so called monster that did this"

"Hagrid used to be in Gryffindor" Susan told her. "He was expelled when his poisonous spider killed Myrtle, I think I told you before"

"I can't really remember" Hermione lied while recalling memories of the half giant and she wondered where he was now. He was supposed to have trained as a gamekeeper but she hadn't seen him around. Maybe he'd gone somewhere to do something important for Dumbledore or Dippet.

"It couldn't have been the Acromantula" Xavian said. "Hagrid showed it to me, it was a tiny thing living in a match box"

"The size doesn't prove it wasn't dangerous" Susan said.

"Finding Hagrid with it isn't proof of it killing Myrtle" Alexander said.

"I don't get how the aurors concluded the case" Andrew said shaking his head.

"They didn't bother" Xavian said leaning forward. "Father told me the ministry put a lot of pressure on them, so they must have gone for the first scapegoat that came along without a second thought"

"Riddle's discovery" Alexander said.

"Exactly" Xavian said leaning back with a triumphant look. "He knew they were desperate, the only reason he worked hard to provide them with an answer was because he murdered the girl"

"That's ridiculous" Susan said setting her palms on the table. "Tom was trying to help Hogwarts, just because the aurors used his findings to conceal their inadequacy doesn't mean he's a killer"

"Slytherin's don't help if they don't gain something from it therefore he killed her"

"If you're going to use his house against him then he could have done it to gain recognition, like the trophy he received for special services to the school"

"He wouldn't have done it for a trophy, he's got dozens of awards"

"There's no winning with you" Susan said throwing her hands up in frustration. "You all don't like Riddle cause he's a Slytherin" she said lowering her hands. "But he's not as bad as you think" Susan said looking towards the Slytherin table with a dreamy expression. Xavian gave her a dirty look before placing a hand on her shoulder with a sigh.

"I hate to be the one to tell you, Susie" he said in a mock sad voice. "But that's your hormones talking" Alexander and Andrew laughed and Susan threw off his hand with an angry expression.

"It's not my hormones" she said glaring at him. "Tom has always been a gentleman, the only times I've seen him attack someone is when he's provoked" she said emphasising the word provoked.

"Since when was cursing the life out of someone gentlemanly?" Xavian said raising his voice.

"He was defending his honour" Susan said hotly. "You can't slander his good name in public and not expect him to retaliate"

"I was voicing the truth" he said with a serious expression. "He thinks he can keep it a secret by hitting me but it's obvious he's-"

"Not that conversation again" Susan interrupted with an angry tone of voice.

"I know you fancy him but Riddle's a freak" Xavian said putting emphases on the word freak.

"I agree with you mate" Alexander said with a nod of his head.

"There's definitely something off about Riddle" Andrew said with a thoughtful expression.

"You're all wrong" Susan said defensively. "Tom isn't a freak"

"He's a bloody faggot" Xavian said with an expression of disgust. "You don't get freakier than that"

"You can't prove he's queer" She said glaring at Xavian. "It's just your opinion"

"His zero interest in girls doesn't exactly support him being straight" Andrew said and Susan fixed her glare on him.

"He might be or he might not be" Alexander said shrugging his shoulders. "I've never seen anything with my own eyes" he added hastily as Susan looked at him.

After observing the dark lord for many weeks Hermione was sure he didn't like either sexes but Tom being asexual would never cross their minds.

"I'll tell you something that will make you believe me" Xavian said and Hermione froze with her mouth full of porridge. "Riddle arrived dressed in his quidditch uniform" he said slowly and resisting the urge to roll her eyes she swallowed, for a second she'd thought he had concrete evidence.

"So what if he did?" Susan said raising her voice.

"It means he didn't change in the changing room"

"What does that prove?" Susan said with a puzzled expression.

"He didn't want to be around half naked boys" Andrew said creasing his brows.

"Correct" Xavian said snapping his fingers.

"If he's queer shouldn't it be the other way around?" Alexander said looking confused.

"Yeah, Xav" Susan said crossing her arms. "That's contradictory"

"Not really" Xavian said. "Riddle knew his unnatural urges would tempt him, he kept away to avoid risking exposure. So you see he has to be queer" Xavian had definitely misinterpreted. Tom had stayed away because he didn't like being too close to people, and if he had been queer he wouldn't have been so weak willed to lose control of himself.

"He could've been uncomfortable with other males looking at him so it doesn't prove anything" Susan said dismissively.

"Why wouldn't he want them to see him?" Xavian questioned. "Unless-" he crossed his arms and leaned forward. "-unless Riddle's actually a girl underneath his uniform" Susan gasped and the boys burst out laughing, and even though Hermione knew Voldemort wasn't a girl she couldn't help her lips from stretching into a smile.

"That's not funny" Susan said angrily "He's not a girl"

"That would explain a lot of things" Xavian said in between his laughter "Like why he doesn't like girls and his violent episodes are actually caused by PMS" he said placing a hand on his chest and breaking down in laughter again. Susan smacked Xavian on the head and Alexander and Andrew were laughing harder than before.

Hermione suddenly she had the urge to laugh as well and she settled for a short giggle behind her hand. "But if he's a secret girl he must like guys, so in the end it still makes him queer" Xavian said breathlessly as he raised his hands to block another smack from Susan.

"Xav, you're fucking crazy" Susan said slapping at his hands.

"Language" Andrew said with laughter in his voice. "We're attracting attention again"

"No words needed with that display" Alexander said gesturing towards Xavian as he tried to catch Susan's wrists.

"He's not queer" Susan said angrily while moving her hands out of his reach. "Has it ever occurred to you he might be waiting for the right girl?" she said pointing her finger at Xavian and he started to laugh once more. Alexander and Andrew followed and she dropped her hand glaring at them.

"Cut it out" Susan hissed lightly punching the table.

"Easy on the violence" Andrew said trying to catch his breath.

"Not good for the audience" Alexander said in between laughter and he tilted his head towards the staring Ravenclaw's.

"You've been reading too much witch romance" Xavian said breathlessly. "And that stuff is messing with your head" he said tapping Susan on the forehead and she threw off his hand glaring at him.

"My heads perfectly fine" Susan said angrily. "Who are you to judge when you've never read one?"

"You don't have to read one to know their ill effects"

"What ill effects?"

Xavian and Susan launched into an argument over the pros and cons of romance novels and soon Alexander and Andrew joined in. Hermione stopped paying attention and she started to think about what Xavian had said earlier. She knew his ridiculous theory that the dark lord was a girl held no truth, but his question of why wouldn't Tom want to be seen had stuck in her mind. Last night she'd thought he'd avoided the changing room because he disliked being close to people. But now it didn't seem like a good enough reason as he could've found a space far from everybody and still changed there, so then why hadn't he? Susan had suggested he might've been uncomfortable with being looked at and it was most likely he was self conscious of his body. He was the tallest male in seventh year but he was also kind of skinny, and the idea of being around boys with large muscles when he lacked them himself must have put him off. Unless there was some other reason she was failing to see but what other reason could he have?

Hermione's eyes travelled to the Slytherin table and she found Tom bent over his book. Like always he was seated right at the end and as faraway as possible from everyone else. His efforts of keeping himself to himself were way too extreme, he appeared to hate human contact so much that he wanted to completely avoid it, and whenever he'd been forced into close proximity with anyone he showed signs of being afraid. She could clearly remember his reaction when she'd grabbed him during their dancing lesson, and at the actual dance he'd shown fear and dislike towards her closeness. Hermione ran her eyes up and down his bowed figure and then she continued to stare. A gut feeling told her something about him wasn't right and she didn't know what. Tom suddenly locked eyes with her and she froze startled.

"Are you supporting Gryffindor?" she heard Xavian ask. "Maya" he said loudly and she snapped out of her frozen state.

"I don't really care about quidditch" she said looking away from the dark lord.

"You're supporting that freak, aren't you?" Xavian said venomously and he gestured towards the Slytherin table.

"I am not" Hermione hissed angrily.

"Xav" Susan said in a commanding tone while placing a hand on his shoulder.

"It's good to hear you're not" Xavian said with a forced calm voice. "Sorry, I didn't mean to make you angry" She chose not to respond and she started to rotate her spoon around the bowl with a moody expression. An uncomfortable silence fell over the group and wondering what had happened the other students whispered while glancing in their direction.

"Susie, you better be siding with us" Alexander said disturbing the quietness and they slowly resumed talking to each other but Hermione didn't join in. She gathered her things before saying a quick goodbye and then she rushed out the great hall. She felt annoyed with Xavian, he clearly couldn't deal with her rejection but did he have to behave like that?

In the potions classroom Hermione cautiously approached her seat. Tom was already there with his quill and books neatly positioned in front of him, and as she took her place he looked at her. She held her breath expecting an angry look any second now but his blank expression remained. Professor Slughorn emerged from the store cupboard and he went back to staring ahead. Suppressing the urge to sigh she set down her bag and started to bring out her things. She would have welcomed a glare to know what kind of mood he was in and it could have indicated if he was still angry with her from yesterday. Nevertheless, it would become apparent when he handled objects. Slughorn loudly clapped his hands and the room went silent.

"Today we are going to be making something advanced" Slughorn said lowering his hands. "With the winter upon us the days have become dull and gloomy, but the sunshine colour of this potion should cheer up your young minds" he said smiling widely. "From the clues who can guess what it is?" Tom's hand immediately shot up and Hermione's followed with a few other students.

"O ho" Slughorn said loudly. "This morning I'm really spoilt for choice" he said scanning his eyes around the room. "It's a hard decision to pick one student over the other" Slughorn said gesturing at them to lower their hands. "But since Tom has always answered the questions correctly it would be somewhat fair to let him answer" Slughorn said turning towards him with a smile and Hermione clenched her jaws. This was blatant favouritism, she'd also never answered a question incorrectly. Well, there was that one time when she'd said February was the best time to harvest blood grass and she'd forgotten to mention it had be on a full moon as well. The dark lord had been quick to point out the incompleteness of her answer, and even though the month had been right the missing piece of vital information must of made her answer incorrect in Slughorn's eyes. "My boy" Slughorn said prompting the heir of Slytherin.

"Elixir to induce euphoria" Tom said confidently. "It gives the drinkers a sense of irrational happiness"

"Correct, five points to Slytherin" Slughorn said with a nod of his head and Hermione grimaced.

After the professor signaled everyone to get started she watched Tom set up the cauldron. He didn't slam it down or use excessive force on anything and he appeared calm. Great, that meant he wasn't angry and most importantly he wasn't angry at her. Hermione picked up a shrivelfig and with a sour expression she waited his permission to go ahead. Yes, what she was doing felt bloody degrading but she didn't want him to get mad at her for doing something wrong. As usual they weren't going to exactly follow the textbook's instructions, and since Tom was the one that made all the changes she had to rely on his guidance to ensure the potion turned out the way he wanted. Tom suddenly looked at her and then down at the shrivelfig before going back to crushing the castor beans. Okay, he'd acknowledged her holding it and he hadn't said anything so that must mean no changes to the instructions for that step. Hermione peeled of the shrivelfig's skin and as she squeezed out the purple sap inside she recalled a memory. Harry had made the same potion with the half blood prince's instructions and she'd told him off for doing so. A wave of sad emotions tightened her chest and she took a deep breath. She didn't want to dwell on things that were painful and she made herself focus on the task at hand.

Hermione suddenly wondered how much variation there would be between Tom and young Snape's methods. Differences would be thought provoking since they were both gifted in potions and she might get to hear a knowledgeable comment to help her understand better. She watched the dark lord with renewed interest and he did not disappoint. He made three modifications that differed from the prince's instructions when they were halfway to making the elixir, and as much as she tried she couldn't understand the significance of his alterations. She wished he would say something, anything to even hint at why he'd done what he'd done but to her annoyance he remained silent. When they got to the last stage of the potion he still hadn't said a word and she started to worry. Why was he giving her the silent treatment? Oh Merlin, he must be still pissed off with her for staring at him in his quidditch uniform.

"The elixir can cause side effects" Tom suddenly said and she almost jumped. "Nose tweaking is the most common" he said uncorking a small bottle. "People that were full of happiness to begin with can't help burst into songs" he said icily and she wondered if Tom's sudden change of tone was caused by disgust towards people singing cheerfully. Most likely since dark lord's tended to be lovers of doom and gloom and he was well on his way to becoming one. "All of that can be counterbalanced by adding seven drops of peppermint oil" he said filling a small pipette with the liquid. Young Snape had used a sprig of it so why was he using the oil or did it not matter? "The active ingredient in the actual plant is less concentrated" Tom said unknowingly answering her question. "Using it in this form is as good guaranteeing no side effects" he said holding the pipette above the cauldron and then he squeezed out the required amount.

Soon a perfect shade of sunshine yellow simmered in their cauldron and the dark lord became quiet again. Hermione felt glad knowing he wasn't angry at her after all, and as he stirred the potion she started to clear her workspace. She was about to put a lid on a jar when her eyes fell on Tom and she froze. He was holding up a ladle full of the elixir and staring at it expressionlessly. A corner of his lips suddenly curled into a half smile and he poured the potion back into the cauldron. The emotionless mask returned to his face and resisting the urge to roll her eyes she screwed the cover on. No matter how long she spent observing his behaviour she could never be certain of what went on in his head. This time the best guess was he thought drinking the potion to feel happy was succumbing to emotional weakness and his incomplete smile was indicative of him mentally laughing at those that did.

At lunchtime Hermione sat in the great hall eating and out of habit she glanced towards the Slytherin table. She caught a glimpse of Tom holding an open book with one hand and a spoon with the other.

"Maya" Susan said and Hermione looked at her. "You remember that boy Alexander"

"Yes" She said dreading what Susan was going to say next.

"He claims he has a girlfriend but no one's actually seen her" Susan said creasing her forehead. "He won't even confide in me" she said gesturing at herself. Why would he unless he wanted the whole school to know, Hermione thought while chewing her food. "She probably doesn't exist so you might have a chance" she said sounding excited and the idea of dating someone who was as good as Ron's grandfather was disturbing.

"No, I don't-" Hermione started.

"I get it" Susan cut in. "Xav's not your type, you prefer red heads"

"I don't like him like that"

"Didn't look like it from the way you stared at him"

"He reminded me of a dead family member" Hermione said lowering her voice.

"Oh" Susan said looking away. "I'm sorry"

"It's okay" A few seconds past in silence before Hermione remembered something from this morning and she tapped Susan on the shoulder. "Don't worry" She said suddenly thinking it better not to ask.

"What is it?" Susan said sitting up straighter. "You can tell me" she said trying to keep the excitement out of her voice.

"It's nothing"

"Please, I won't tell anyone"

"Fine" Hermione said giving in to her own curiosity. "But don't take this the wrong way"

"I won't" Susan said nodding her head.

"What does N.M.W stand for?" she whispered and a mischievous look entered Susan's eyes.

"You seriously don't know" Susan said leaning closer. "It's either newly married wizard or newly married witch" she whispered. "Depends on the edition you have, but people just call them N.M.W books"

"I see" Hermione said reaching for her goblet. She hadn't expected the letters to stand for un-sexual words and therefore had a hard time figuring it out.

"They have them in America as well" Susan said creasing her brows. "Were you brought up in a remote village cut off from civilisation?" she said with a humorous tone.

"No" Hermione said setting down her goblet. "Just strict parents and home schooling"

"I can't believe you didn't come across the one your parents received" Susan said lowering her voice.

"Received" Hermione said with a questioning look.

"I don't know for sure if they do it in America" She said wrinkling her forehead. "But in Britain the ministry provides a free copy of the book to every couple on the day they register their marriage"

"Oh" She hadn't known that. No one in her time had mentioned anything of the sort but then again adults wouldn't have openly talked about it. Not many people in their age range had gotten married expect Bill and Fleur, but with Voldemort in control of the ministry registering the marriage hadn't exactly been an option. Maybe the free book scheme had been a thing of the 1940s and 50s otherwise she was sure Parvati or Lavender would have talked off it.

"N.M.W books are the only illustrated ones you can legally own" Susan whispered. "There are others types on the black market but if you get caught there's a fine of five galleons" So that's the reason why the N.M.W books were so popular during this time. The ministry must have relaxed the rules in the future and all the hype of owning an N.M.W book had died down.

"Why does the ministry favour the N.M.W ones?" Hermione asked. "Aren't all the other books showing the same thing in the end?"

"Same thing" Susan said looking slightly shocked. "God, you have so much to learn" she said shaking her head. "Simple penetration isn't the beginning and the end of what's out there" she whispered and Hermione's cheeks coloured.

"I don't want to know" Hermione said quickly. "So the N.M.W books" she whispered.

"All the pictures in them are done by a married couple and it's written by marriage counsellors" Susan said. "The ministry was strictly against the book, but the publishers argued it would provide crucial knowledge to newlyweds and therefore promote harmony within marriage" Susan took a quick sip from her goblet and cleared her throat. "They stressed that no moral boundaries were being broken and they'd only promote natural practices" Susan said emphasising the last two words and she paused with her eyebrows raised.

Hermione immediately understood what that look meant and she nodded her head to say she didn't want to know details of unnatural practices. Susan grinned and took another sip from her goblet. "Over time the authors gained public support and after many protests, mainly by the witches rights group the ministry gave in" Susan said resting her head on her hand. Hermione found this to be an interesting piece of history and she made a mental note to find out more about the withes rights group in her spare time. "Expect the basic free one there's at least a dozen other titles in the series" she said sitting up straight again.

"And they're all approved by the ministry?" Hermione asked.

"They all follow the same moral code as the first book so the ministry didn't have a reason to object" she said shrugging her shoulders. "Besides, the generous amounts of galleons the minster receives from taxing them isn't going to make him change his mind any time soon" Susan said raising an eyebrow. "Speaking of other titles" Susan said leaning towards her and she suddenly smiled. "Remember that picture book I told you about" she said lowering her voice and Hermione reluctantly nodded her head to say yes. "It's a N.M.W one on how to spice things up" she whispered. "Only mild stuff though, I don't think the BDSM chapter would have shocked you that much" she continued with a roll of her eyes.

"I don't see the point in reading information that is likely to be disgusting and have no use to me in the future" Hermione said sounding irritated.

"I promise it will be very useful in keeping your Slytherin happy" Susan said fixing her eyes on Tom.

"He's not my Slytherin" Hermione said setting her spoon down loudly.

"Oh come on, Maya" Susan said looking at her. "I saw you two staring at each other"

"It was coincidence" she said angrily. "I randomly looked in his direction and so did he"

"If you say so" Susan said rolling her eyes. "Strange how you come to his defence when things are said about his lack of wealth" She continued with a knowing smile on her face.

"Look, I was just doing the right thing" Hermione said raising her voice and she suddenly felt like a hypocrite. If making fun of deprived people was wrong then wasn't murder as well. No, she was right. Killing was necessary to remove lord Voldemort but she couldn't make herself agree it was fair to laugh at him for being poor.

"Of course" Susan said slowly. "Very interesting how it didn't seem wrong to you when they called him queer, perhaps you had inside information confirming otherwise" she said lowering her voice.

"Just stop it" Hermione snapped. "I don't like Riddle" she said emphasising the last word while giving the girl a death glare.

"Okay, okay" Susan said raising her hands. "You can keep your secret"

"There is no secret" she hissed clawing at the table and suddenly realising others were staring at her she relaxed her hands. The students seated closest to them looked back and forth between her and the Slytherin table and it was obvious they'd over heard the surname Riddle. "It's not true" She said a little loudly while looking at Susan and the girl raised an eyebrow before a look of understanding dawned on her face. Hermione grabbed her spoon and started to eat with speed. She carried on like that for a while and soon the onlookers lost interest.

"Maya" Susan said and Hermione paused with the spoon halfway to her mouth.

"Don't talk to me" She whispered angrily. "I'd rather people not hear your false beliefs"

"I didn't mean for everyone to hear" Susan whispered and ignoring her Hermione resumed eating at a fast pace. "If you don't slow down you're going to choke" Susan said and she continued to pay no attention to the girl. "I'm sorry, please don't leave early because of me" she said lowering her voice. "I promise I won't talk about Tom" she said whispering. Taking in Susan's apologetic expression Hermione's anger vanished and she decided to speak to the girl again.

"It's not that" Hermione said lowering her eating utensil. "I just wanted to finish quickly"

"Why?"

"I need to go to the library"

"But we have two hours free time after lunch" Susan said creasing her brows.

"The more time to study the better" she said setting her spoon down.

"You're taking studying way too seriously" Susan said looking at her like she'd grown two heads. "We don't even have any tests coming up"

"I just want to do some light reading" she said refilling her goblet

"Three hours worth of reading isn't light reading" Susan said shaking her head as Hermione drank deeply.

"Time seems to flow fast when I actually learn something so I'm making up for it" Hermione said putting the goblet down.

"Oh, that's the reason why everyone in my house has no life" Susan said in a dramatic tone while touching her temple. "They're so busy making up for lost time" she said jokingly and the Ravenclaw head girl smiled.

"See you in Herbology" Hermione said standing up and hanging her bag on her shoulder.

"There's still food left on your plate" Susan said disapprovingly.

"Not hungry" she said turning towards the double doors and then she rushed out the great hall. She wasn't really going to the library, she was planning to sneak out to Hogsmeade.

Hermione entered the heads common room and she was about to close the door when a mass of feathers burst through. She jumped back cursing and glared at the owl which was now sitting on top of an armchair looking innocent. It lifted its feet a few times to indicate there was a letter tied to it and wondering who had written to her she walked up to the bird. As she removed the envelope the owl affectionately nipped at her fingers and then it flew out the common room with a hoot. After shutting the door she climbed the stairs to her room. By the time she'd made it inside the envelope was torn and the unfolded letter was held in her hand. Hermione leaned against her door and ran her eyes over the black inked words. It read, I'm sorry for the things I said at breakfast. Its Hogsmeade weekend tomorrow, come out with me and I'll try my best to make it up to you. Eagerly awaiting your reply, your friend Xavian. Grimacing she crumpled the letter and the envelope before making it vanish. Xavian definitely had more than friendship on his mind and as she didn't have signed permission it's not like she could go with him, not that she'd wanted to in the first place. But regardless of whether she was allowed to or not she'd certainly be setting foot in the wizarding village. Wishing herself luck Hermione wore her hooded cloak and then she left the room.

Outside the heads quarters she placed a disillusionment charm on herself. She made her way to the third floor and male voices shouting insults filled her ears. Not far from her two wands lay on the floor and a pair of boys were engaged in muggle combat. Unaware of her presence they moved towards her and she hastily took cover behind the statue of the one eyed witch. Then she cautiously poked her head out and after a while of watching them she mentally groaned. When were they going to leave? What in the name of Merlin made them think the third floor was the best place to stop and fight? By now she should've been walking down the tunnel to Hogsmeade and those idiots were wasting her time. She glanced at her wristwatch to find if she left in five minutes she would still have time to get there and back. She decided to stun the boys if they weren't gone by two minutes and she hoped nothing similar happened on the way back.

Hermione's mind momentarily froze and she realised she'd made a big mistake. No, she couldn't go to Hogsmeade now. Why on earth did she decide to go there so early? She bloody hadn't been thinking, because if she had she would have noticed the huge holes in her idea. Harry had secretly gone to Hogsmeade during the day but he'd had an invisibility cloak and she didn't have one. Sure she had scheduled free time but as she was head girl the professors could still call on her for assistance. Merlin's beard, how could she have forgotten that? If she was discovered missing the consequences would be disastrous. No, she wouldn't allow that to happen. She would go to Hogsmeade when it was late, that way the majority of the students should be in their dormitories and the professors wouldn't be asking for her at night. Plus, in the dark the disillusionment charm would be as good as invisibility.

Someone tall suddenly walked into the corridor and their face was hidden behind an open book. The person appeared so engrossed in reading that they weren't disturbed by the battling duo and the boys were too occupied to notice anyone else. One of them swung their fist at the opponent's face, the would be victim jumped out the way and exposed a figure behind him. The attacker's fist travelled on and he punched the mysterious third person in the chest. Accompanied by a loud gasp the book dropped from the individual's hand and revealed their face. Hermione's eyes widened as she recognised Tom Riddle and a fearful expression plastered on the boy's face as he realised who he had hit. The dark lord hastily pulled his robes shut and took a few steps back with a shaken look.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were there" the boy said unsteadily and he cautiously took a step forward. "Are you alright?" he said reaching towards the dark lord.

"Don't touch me" Tom yelled pointing his wand and the boy jumped back. The heir of Slytherin's left hand continued to hold his robes together and his other hand trembled as a furious expression formed on his face. Tom suddenly took a step towards the boy and the boy raised his hands in surrender.

"I'm sorry" he said with a wavering voice. "I was trying to hit him" the boy said loudly and he gestured towards the other boy. That boy was crouched over his wand and for a second he froze looking terrified, then he grabbed the stick and ran out the corridor as fast as he could. The boy in front of the dark lord decided to escape as well but he didn't get very far before Tom magically threw him to the floor. Noticing his fallen wand the boy desperately crawled towards it but it flew out of his reach seconds before he could touch it. The dark lord made the boy fall onto his back and walked up to him in quick strides.

"Please, I didn't mean it" the boy whimpered as he tried to slide away. Tom stamped his foot down on the boy's right hand and the boy cried out.

"Ignissa" the heir of Slytherin hissed flicking his wand and the boy started to scream. His legs shook and his arms moved against the floor in a flapping motion. The action caused the hand still trapped under the dark lord's shoe to leak blood but Tom carried on without a care.

Hermione looked away knowing she couldn't help the boy without exposing herself or making the dark lord mad at her, and she tried to find comfort in the thought that in the end Voldemort would pay for everything. The boy was lucky to be in the passageway otherwise she was sure he'd have had the cruciatus used on him. Some time ago Tom had told her off for trying to crucio Malfoy in the corridor. He was evil but not stupid. He didn't go around carelessly using unforgivables or else he'd have been in Azkaban by now. After a while she wondered why Tom hadn't dragged him into an empty classroom or a broom cupboard like he had with her. In seconds she found the most likely answer, he must have been too angry to delay the punishment and wanting instant gratification he'd settled for a less extreme torture method.

Suddenly the sound of running footsteps could be heard and it became louder with each passing second. Lost in his rage the dark lord hadn't added the magical silencer and now someone was coming to investigate. Ending the spell Tom took a step back and the boy's sobs echoed of the walls. With a wave of his wand the dark lord messed his perfect hair and all trace of emotion disappeared from his face. Soon professor Merrythought rushed into the corridor and her magical stick was held high.

"Riddle" the professor said halting and she bore her piercing eyes into him. "What is going on here?" she said raising her voice and lowering her gaze to the crying boy on the floor.

"My-my hand" the boy said wheezing. "He-"

"Princeton was fighting with Murray again" Tom said speaking over the boy and the professor looked up. "He decided to attack me when I tried to stop it" he said lifting his wand to his forehead and he used it to move some hair hanging over his left eye. Hermione knew Tom's actions were deliberate and she grudgingly agreed he was very good at conditioning people's minds. He'd drawn Merrythought's attention to his head and his untidy hair would make what he'd said believable.

"No" the boy whispered and he tried to sit up.

"In self defence I used a few spells" Tom said lowering his right hand.

"I hit him by accident" the boy said with a low tearful voice. "-and he-"

"Nothing harmful, professor" the dark lord said speaking over him again. "You can check" he added with a softer tone and he offered his wand to Merrythought. She narrowed her eyes and appeared to be considering it.

"That won't be necessary, Riddle" she suddenly said and she turned her attention to the wailing boy on floor. "Calm yourself, Princeton" the professor ordered and then she bent down. Hermione wasn't surprised to see everything in Tom's favour again. He'd manipulated the professor with the reverse psychology trick, and he probably wouldn't have dared to try it on the sharp minded Merrythought if he hadn't known he was her most favourite student.

"Was Murray hostile towards you?" Merrythought asked looking up at the dark lord as she waved her wand over Princeton.

"No, professor" Tom said. "He just ran off" She looked back down and moved her wand in circles.

"There's nothing really wrong with you" Merrythought suddenly said sounding cross and she lowered her wand.

"But-" the boy said tearfully and he clutched his hand. "-my-"

"It's just a mere cut, Princeton" she interrupted with an angry tone and then she placed her hands on the boy's shoulders. "Get up" she said pulling on them and as he stood shakily she straightened. "You've been told countless times not to bring your family enmity with the Murray's to Hogwarts" Merrythought said raising her voice and glaring daggers at the boy. Princeton shrank away from her and tightly gripped his injured hand. "You're a sixth year now, Mr Princeton" she continued. "This kind of behaviour cannot be allowed to go on"

"I didn't start it" Princeton mumbled.

"I don't want to hear excuses" the professor snapped. "How dare you hit a head boy" she said loudly with her nostrils flaring.

"I didn't do it on purpose" Princeton said weakly and he looked at Tom with a fearful expression. The dark lord gave him a death glare and he froze wide eyed.

"You mean Mr Riddle is a liar" Merrythought said almost shouting.

"I did-didn't-sa-say that" the boy stuttered while continuing to stare at Tom.

"Then I think it's very clear who is telling the truth and who isn't" the professor said emphasising the last two words. "Apologise to Mr Riddle" she said raising her voice but the boy remained quiet. Tom tilted his head a little to the left and anger clearly showed on his face.

"Now" Merrythought shouted.

"I'm sorry" Princeton blurted out and he looked away from the dark lord.

"Violence and lack of respect towards those superior to you will not be tolerated at Hogwarts" Merrythought said glaring at him and then she summoned his wand. "Did Murray injure your hand or was it your own fault?" she asked as she held out his magical stick and Princeton looked at Tom again. The heir of Slytherin was rotating his wand between his finger and thumb and he looked angrier than ever.

"It was Murray" Princeton said in a high pitched voice and he moved towards the professor. "It was Murray" he repeated taking his wand and then he wiped his watery eyes with his sleeves.

"Go to the hospital wing then come straight to my office" Merrythought ordered and Princeton fearfully glanced at the head boy before leaving the corridor as fast as he could. The dark lord's face instantly became expressionless and he pointed his wand towards his fallen book but it flew into the professor's hand before he could summon it. "This is too advanced for Murray or Princeton" she said looking down at the front cover before holding it towards Tom.

"Thank you" he said taking the book with his right hand, and Merrythought's eyes jumped to his other hand that was still keeping his robes closed. "If there is nothing else, professor, may I take my leave?" Tom asked while tucking the hardback under his arm and slowly turning away from her.

"Are you hurt?" Merrythought questioned with a sudden sharp tone.

"No, professor" the dark lord said in a slightly strained voice and he turned back towards her.

"It does not appear so" she said gesturing at his upper half. "Let me take a look, Riddle" Merrythought said raising her voice and taking a step towards him.

"I'm fine" Tom said hurriedly and he moved further away from her. "The same can't be said for my shirt" he added in a high pitched voice and an embarrassed expression took over his face. "Princeton loosened a few buttons when he tried to grab me" he said glancing at the floor and he readjusted the hold on his book.

"I see" the professor said looking uncomfortable for a moment. "They'll have to be punished severely this time" she said facing away from him. "Fix those buttons now, Riddle, or you'll catch your death in this weather" Merrythought voiced as she started to walk towards one of the exits.

"Yes, professor" Tom said raising his wand and he kept his eyes on her back until she left the corridor. Then he stood still listening to her footsteps and when they completely faded he put his magical stick away. The heir of Slytherin began to sweep his gaze over the surroundings and feeling unsafe Hermione entirely hid behind the statue. Did she just see his robes still being held together? Yes, she was sure of it. And what was all that rubbish about loose buttons? Something about this whole thing wasn't right, the dark lord was definitely up to something.

She cautiously poked her head out and saw Tom standing in the same place with his head bent down. He suddenly dropped his book and stumbled into the wall. Then he leaned back against it and faced upwards. The young dark lord closed his eyes with a pained expression and let go of his robes. They fell away to reveal his white shirt and Hermione held back a shocked gasp. There was a large patch of red on his chest and it definitely hadn't been there when he'd walked into the corridor. For a few seconds she stared frozen and then her mind jumped awake.

What the hell was that colour staining his clothing? It couldn't possibly be blood, could it? Merlin, was he bleeding? She leaned a little forward and strained her eyes to get a better look. He still appeared to be in pain and he wouldn't be hurting if he wasn't injured. The dark lord had closed his robes after the boy had punched him but how could a punch make someone bleed like that? She suddenly remembered the same thing happening when she had hit Tom in the chest. Back then she hadn't given it much thought and over time she had forgotten about it. Now the memory stood out in her mind but it didn't help provide any answers, it just left her with more questions.

All of a sudden the young dark lord hissed and startled Hermione took in a sharp intake of breath. He opened his eyes with a string of inhuman sounds and even though she'd heard him speak parseltongue before she couldn't help but feel a shiver of fear crawl down her spine. Compared to what she'd heard in the forbidden forest this was colder in nature and had a creepy vibration to it. Tom looked down at himself and creasing his brows he pushed himself up. He made his hands into fists and punched the wall behind with another hiss escaping his lips. He slowly uncoiled his hands before dipping one of them into his pocket and then he pulled out a handkerchief. The dark lord started to rub his chest with it and Hermione's eyes widened in disbelief as the red mark completely vanished. He spread out the handkerchief before holding it up and the stainless appearance of the fabric gave no indication whatsoever of having absorbed anything. He neatly folded it into a triangle and then he placed it back in his pocket. With a quick wave of his wand Tom summoned his book and after looking back and forth he ran out of the corridor.

Hermione slowly walked out of her hiding place and un-disillusioned herself. Trying to understand what she'd witnessed she started to walk towards the heads quarters, soon she stood in front of Hades and Persephone's painting and they weren't there.

"Persephone" she called taping the frame with her wand but the goddess didn't appear. "Persephone" she repeated and still no one came. "Hades" Hermione said trying again and when there was no response she let out a frustrated sigh. If only she knew Tom's spell to summon portrait people, it had to be his own invention since it wasn't in the books. Suddenly a dishevelled looking woman appeared on the canvas and as she hand combed her hair out of her face an angry expression showed. It took Hermione a second to realise it was Persephone and it wasn't hard to guess that the heir of Slytherin was the cause of her state.

"Password" Persephone suddenly shouted and Hermione almost jumped.

"Medusa" she said acidly. It wasn't her fault the dark lord had attacked the painting and the crazy goddess didn't have to get angry at her. Persephone gave her a dirty look as the door clicked open and she hoped Tom wasn't in the common room. His foul mood wouldn't have worn off yet and she had no desire to be on the receiving end of his anger. The head girl hesitantly stepped inside and finding herself alone she hurried into her room.

Hermione dumped her bag on the table before sitting on the bed and then she stared towards the mirror deep in thought. Something was really wrong with Tom Riddle, really really wrong and she didn't know what. The one thing she was sure of was that bleeding like that definitely wasn't normal. She'd always had a feeling she was missing something when it came to explaining his strange dislike of touching and being touched and this had to be it.

But he only seemed to bleed if someone hit him in the chest, so then why did he hate human contact with other parts of his body? Hermione creased her brows as she pondered the question. She thought back to when Tom had been in the headmaster's office with the auror leaning close to him, Slughorn patting him on the back at Slug club and him being made to dance with her at Halloween. In all these memories one thing was constant, his expressions of dislike and fear, and that meant something was there strong enough to rattle the dark lord that wasn't visible to the naked eye. So what could that possibly be? Hermione relaxed her brows and leaned a little forward.

Perhaps his mysterious condition caused him great pain whenever someone touched him or got too close to him. That would perfectly explain his extreme rule of keeping himself to himself, when she had grabbed him during their dancing lesson his reaction had left her puzzled but if it had hurt him badly then she could understand. Merlin, this had to be the real reason why he'd avoided the changing room. Being unclothed in the presence of others probably worsened his condition and his chest must have temporary visible cuts since the bleeding appeared to be restricted to it. Tom obviously didn't want everyone to see and there was no way he could've gotten changed in front of his quidditch team without exposing his upper half.

So if he felt pain at anyone's touch other than himself then that meant blood status didn't matter. No wonder he'd reacted the same way with known purebloods, therefore he must've told the truth at the Halloween dance when he'd said he wasn't bothered by her blood status. But then again Tom thought she was half blood, and knowing his hatred for muggles he probably wouldn't have taken it well if she'd told him she was really a muggleborn.

Hermione stretched her legs and leaned back on her elbows. She suddenly remembered the way Tom had used his handkerchief. It'd made the blood disappear without staining itself and something like that was only achievable with an advanced absorbing spell. It was meant to be difficult to cast but obviously that wasn't an issue for the dark lord. In all her weeks of observing him she'd noticed he always had a handkerchief and she'd concluded it was due to a 1940s Slytherin custom. Actually, come to think of it she couldn't remember seeing anyone else from the house of snakes with one. Surely if such a house tradition existed then Abraxas Malfoy would've displayed his handkerchief by now instead of using the back of his hand. t was clear to her now, Tom didn't carry one to fit in with the other Slytherin's. He kept a handkerchief at all times because he needed it to make the blood vanish and that meant his condition was persistent. So either his chest bleed frequently or he was just prepared for incidents that did this to him.

Hermione crossed her legs and sat up straight. Something about the dark lord's handkerchief didn't add up though. When he'd used it to wash blood from her face she could recall with certainty that it hadn't magically absorbed anything, why hadn't it? Merlin, it'd almost slipped her mind. There was no way the handkerchief he had now was the one he'd used on her since he'd left it with her, and then she'd destroyed it in her attempt to stop Susan from taking it. However the dark lord's condition and the fact that powerful absorbing enchantments ceased to work after a few days, and wouldn't function if recast on the same material, led her to believe he continuously acquired the same type of handkerchief she'd recently seen him use. So therefore he must've forgotten to place the spell on the one he'd used on her.

No, that didn't sound right. Tom's mind was so sharp she found it hard to believe he would forget anything, then that could only mean he'd been aware of the cloth not being enchanted. Now that she thought back on the details, he'd conjured a goblet full of water beforehand to clean her face with, and he wouldn't have done that if he'd expected the handkerchief to magically absorb the blood. Still, something was amiss. Tom's daily effort to keep the cloth on his person meant he was always prepared to deal with his strange bleeding casualties, so then why had he on that day put himself at risk by deliberately carrying a non-enchanted handkerchief?

It wouldn't be like the dark lord to do so but it couldn't be denied that the cloth hadn't absorbed her blood. Hermione frowned as she found herself confused and her thoughts ended up going around in contradictory circles. Everything she knew about the heir of Slytherin indicated he wouldn't have done that but then the handkerchief should've taken in her blood. She bit her lips and thought it through again.

Wait, the handkerchief hadn't absorbed her blood. She'd taken that to mean it wouldn't absorb his either but what if that wasn't the case? All the known absorbing spells didn't have the power to be selective of their intake but it wasn't exactly impossible for someone to invent one that could be. The average person would see it as a tedious unachievable task but being a genius the dark lord would find it a matter of simply modifying the existing spell. Merlin's beard, then that meant he'd designed it to specifically make his blood disappear and nothing else. Everything made sense now, the handkerchief had been enchanted with that spell all along. It was clever of the dark lord to make its magical ability exclusive to himself as it would behave like a normal handkerchief with anyone else, so if it ever fell in the wrong hands during the spell's active stage he'd have nothing to worry about.

Hermione pressed her lips into a thin line as she suddenly thought of a question. Tom would have to regularly replace his handkerchief to sustain the spell's effectiveness, also it having the embroidery of his initials meant it'd been specially made for him, but if he was as poor as he appeared to be then how could he continuously afford such a service? Unless he made them himself but then he'd need raw materials, so how was he getting a constant supply of it?

In seconds a memory sparked in her mind and everything clicked in place. When she'd come across him volunteering at the hospital wing she'd thought a cotton reel had gone missing but she'd dismissed the idea after presuming the dark lord wouldn't have use for it. Now she was certain he'd stolen the cotton reel to make handkerchiefs from it, perhaps he made other things as well. Madam Whittaker had said they were mainly used to make bandages and he must need them when his injuries were too deep to be instantly healed by magic. So that's the real reason why Tom always volunteered to make cotton reels, otherwise Madam Whittaker would get suspicious if he kept on requesting things like handkerchiefs and bandages.

Now, all the conclusions she'd come to were very enlightening but she still hadn't found the answer to the most important question. What was making Tom Riddle bleed like that? She searched her brain in vain but she really didn't know and the best place to find an answer was the library. A sudden rush of excitement went through her at the idea of researching something unknown and she jumped to her feet. Hermione threw of her hooded cloak and grabbed her bag. Then she cautiously stepped out of the room and finding herself alone she rushed out of the heads quarters.

Inside the library Hermione stared at the book shelves and wondered where she should start looking. Tom's condition was most likely the result of dark magic, maybe a spell had backfired or he could've touched something cursed. She started to eagerly search through the defence against the dark arts section and with passing time her enthusiasm became less and less. Hermione let out a frustrated sigh as she replaced another hardback on the shelf and then she rubbed her wrists. They were aching from the amount of books she'd handled and she'd gotten a paper cut or two from rapidly turning the pages. So far she hadn't found anything close to his condition and there weren't many relevant books left but hopefully it would be in one of them. She sat down on the floor before summoning a red cloth bound book and then she used her wand to move the pages. Doing this with magic was so much better, if only she hadn't gotten all excited and thought of this approach sooner. Hermione lowered her stick as the words cursed mirror caught her attention. It wasn't what she was looking for but the paragraph was interesting to read. She suddenly remembered the time she'd seen Tom come face to face with a levitating mirror. He'd appeared so frightened of his reflection he'd smashed the looking glass with his fist instead of disintegrating it magically.

Merlin, could this be another side effect of his mysterious condition? It was possible, maybe looking at his reflection hurt him and prolonged staring resulted in something worse. To have the most handsome face on earth and not be able to look at it, if that was true then it was really sad. Hermione raised her wand to turn the page and then she froze as she realised what she'd thought. How could she think the dark lord was the most handsome? No, it wasn't like that. The physical evidence was hard to overlook and she'd just meant it as a general statement. She didn't personally find him attractive or anything. No matter the outer shell she knew the real monster he was on the inside and that made lord Voldemort ugly.

If he was really restricted from looking at his reflection she doubted it bothered him. He couldn't have cared about the way he looked, otherwise he wouldn't have progressively disfigured himself just to gain power. Right now he must see his face as a means to an end, an advantage that allowed him to easily charm, persuade and manipulate others. But when he had enough power he wouldn't need its help as fear and force would do the job. Well, since she'd based the connection between the mirror and his condition on her assumption it was very likely it wasn't true. The next best explanation was that the blackness of his soul frightened him as mirrors were said to reflect the soul of a person, she'd thought of it last time but superstitions couldn't be relied upon so in the end she was still clueless.

Wait, the only thing Voldemort had been scared of was death. If his condition hurt him to look at his reflection he must be afraid the pain would eventually double in strength and somehow kill him. Then it must also apply to everything else with painful restrictions, and that meant all the fearful looks she'd seen on his face were really manifestations of his fear of death.

Nearly an hour later Hermione stood staring at the book shelf with her hands on hips and an angry expression on her face. The defence against the dark arts section didn't have the answer or anything that was similar to Tom's condition. Two things she'd read had drawn her attention but she knew they were too different to be actually linked. Spells that could be used to cut the victim had been described but it required a wand and not just being touched or punched by someone. Also, the power of the spell was limited to the number of times it was accurately cast and it didn't indefinitely continue to harm the victim afterwards. Cursed objects that cut you upon contact existed, but only the surface it'd touched would be harmed and the power of the curse didn't extend beyond that object. You didn't need to be intelligent to see there was no real connection between Tom's condition and those spells and curses. If there was anyone who thought otherwise then it would be the same as saying a frog and a human were the same species because they both had eyes, and they definitely weren't the same.

She couldn't find a curse or a negative consequence of a spell that made the victim bleed upon forceful contact from another person, and caused them pain if they were touched by someone or were at a close proximity to them. But Tom's condition did all of those things to him so then why wasn't it documented in the books? How could black magic not be the cause of something like that?

Hermione whispered a string of swear words and let go of her hips. A dull thud suddenly met her ears and she turned to see a student had dropped a book. She was about to look away when a small dusty sign caught her eyes and it read, healing. There weren't many books in that section as healing magic wasn't taught at Hogwarts, they were there for general information or to satisfy curiosity. A thought suddenly struck her, what if Tom had some kind of an illness? Magical diseases did tend to have magical symptoms so it wasn't exactly impossible.

Hermione glanced at her wristwatch to find she had about 40 minutes of free time left. Feeling excited again she rushed over to the healing section and began searching through the books. As there weren't many to read she was done in a little over 30 minutes and her mood was right back to where it had been before. The healing books didn't have the answer either, so if he wasn't suffering from dark magical side effects, cursed or ill then what the hell was wrong with him?

Hermione creased her brows and started to pace back and forth. Damn it, why wasn't his condition in the books? A sudden realisation made her freeze, she couldn't find the answer in the books because she didn't have the right books. The healing section wasn't regularly updated and the existing texts were general healing ones that didn't deal with complex things. So he could be ill and she just didn't have the resources to confirm it. Or it could be the doing of dark magic and the book with the details was missing from the defence against the dark arts section. Merlin, why hadn't it occurred to her before? Tom's condition was probably caused by magic that was considered too dark to be studied at Hogwarts, and so any books about it wouldn't be in the student area of the library but the restricted section might have something.

Hermione wanted to go there right now, but her free time was almost over and there was a greater risk of getting caught during day light hours. She decided to come back after dark and then she remembered she was meant to go to Hogsmeade in the evening. It would be too late by the time she returned and it wouldn't be wise to make the broom cursing potion the next morning with less sleep. It was crucial to the dark lord's demise and she had to be wide awake to avoid making fatal mistakes. In the afternoon it would be kind of dark because of the winter month so she could try sneak in after the last class of her day, but then she'd have to skip doing homework. Seventh year was no picnic, she already had her hands full with assignments and revision that had to be completed soon. On top of that was her mission to murder lord Voldemort and she had a deadline to get everything ready before the quidditch match.

Hermione had taken her curiosity too far and she couldn't afford to get sidetracked. She didn't have time to waste on finding out what was wrong with Tom. Why should she even care about his state of health? It wasn't important to know what was causing his condition because it couldn't be permanent or life threatening, otherwise Tom Riddle wouldn't have lived to become lord Voldemort. Therefore he naturally recovered with time or a cure must exist and if it didn't then he must've invented one. A memory suddenly wormed its way to the front of her mind. Tom had Albertus Magnus's book on theoretical further uses of dragon's blood, the seventh year curriculum didn't require further knowledge than the twelve uses so he definitely wasn't reading it for academic purposes. He was probably using it to work on a cure and the snake venom he'd collected this morning might also be a part of it. He could have wanted the Zulfitack flowers for the same reason. She'd accidentally burnt them but the dark lord must've gone back and stolen more.

Again, all of this was theoretical and based on her assumptions. Whether he was working on a cure or not it didn't make a difference because she knew how history ought to play out without her intervention. With her brain turned off research mode she felt glad that the dark lord was suffering. This might make the task of murdering him easier and if he was fragile as he appeared to be then a fall from his broomstick would definitely kill him. Her lips slowly twisted into a wicked smile and with it plastered on her face Hermione walked out of the library.

When it was time for her first afternoon class she put on a heavy cloak and started to make her way towards the greenhouse. As she stepped outside the castle she cast a warming spell but the cold weather remained dominant. Soon she came across other students from her class and they were all dressed in clothes to keep them warm.

"The two thousand year old cloak must have finally fallen apart" Hermione heard Xavian's voice say from afar and it was followed by the sound of group laughter.

"He's walking like its summer, how in the name of Merlin is he doing that?" She heard someone else say.

"He's a Slytherin snake, being cold blooded probably makes him cold proof" Xavian said and the collective laughter followed once again. Hermione turned to see who the person of their ridicule was and then she froze as her eyes found the cloak less figure. It was Tom Riddle and he was only dressed in his school uniform. There was no expression on his face and his hands were at his sides with the fingers curled in semi-circles. What the hell? Why in his right mind would he come out like that? That's it, of course he wasn't in his right mind after the incident in the corridor. When the dark lord was greatly angered he usually killed owls or hit objects, and it looked like subjecting himself to arctic conditions was another one of his bizarre ways of dealing with it.

Strong wind suddenly started to blow in Tom's direction and scattered most of his hair over his left eye. The bottom of his robes eventually started to fly behind him and exposed his long legs and hips. The female onlookers whispered to each other and giggled while the males remained unimpressed. Xavian made another comment and it was followed by Susan's voice telling him off. Hermione's mind was too occupied to register what they'd said because like the other girls she found herself captivated by the heir of Slytherin. Tom's fluttering hair seemed to dance in perfect rhythm with the howls of the wind and each movement of his lower body appeared uncannily graceful. The weather had somehow magnified his beauty and it was like he'd morphed into an ancient god of storm or lightening that she'd read about in mythologies. The young dark lord suddenly shivered, giving away he was mortal after all and he pulled his robes back in place.

Hermione snapped out of her fixation and spun back around. She started to walk forward with speed but the feeling of guilt and self disgust did not lessen. Why in the name of bloody Merlin did she think those things? In the forbidden forest she'd found his parseltongue melodious, then in the library she'd thought he had the most handsome face and now this rubbish. Despite his physical appearance she should have kept in mind she was looking at Voldemort, the very same wizard that had murdered her parents and friends. Hermione took in a deep breath of ice cold air and bit the inside of her cheeks. Tom Riddle is Voldemort and Voldemort is a hideous monster, she repeated it in her mind like a mantra for the rest of the way.

Inside the greenhouse she caught Xavian staring at her and he gave her a smile. Thinking it would be impolite to completely ignore him she returned a weak smile and he winked at her. Hermione hastily looked away and hurried towards the long table at the front. The nerve of that boy to do something like that when she was trying to be civil, especially after the way he'd behaved at breakfast. Oh crap, she'd forgotten about his letter. In addition to apologising he'd asked her out to Hogsmeade and since she hadn't written a reply he must've taken her smile to mean a yes. Double crap, no wonder he was unashamedly winking at her. She made a mental note to send him a letter soon and burst his bubble.

Hermione found Tom seated at his usual place and as she settled onto a stool near him he didn't acknowledge her presence. He was staring ahead expressionlessly and his hair was still windswept.

"Quiet" Professor Stephen Reed said with a magically magnified voice and silence spread throughout the greenhouse. "Today we're going to be working with sansiveeras" he said in his normal voice. "At their mature stage they release spores" he said pointing at a diagram on the blackboard. "But that can be changed to fruits with seeds" the professor said waving his wand and the drawing changed. "Who can tell me what they have to be fed on in order for that to happen?" Reed said expectantly looking at Tom but he didn't raise his hand. Hermione hadn't wanted to risk stealing his limelight when he was in a bad mood so she hadn't either.

The professor looked back and forth between them with a disbelieving expression and then his eyes settled on Tom. "Riddle" he said loudly and Tom suddenly looked startled at the mention of his name. "Are you okay?" the professor asked with a worried look.

"I'm fine" the dark lord mumbled and he hand combed his hair back in place. "I'm sorry sir" he said sitting up straight. "I wasn't paying attention" he said lowering his gaze apologetically.

"I asked the class a question about sansiveeras" Reed said. "And since no one seems to know, what does a sansiveera need to feed on in order to produce fruits?"

"Goats blood" Tom said monotonously. The class broke out in shocked whispers and Hermione felt like rolling her eyes.

"There is no need to be alarmed" the professor said raising his voice. "It sounds like something from a dark magic ritual but I assure you it is not" he said opening a large box with a flick of his wand. "Hogwarts wouldn't allow me to teach something like that" he said with a short laughter. "Not that I know of any dark magic rituals" the professor mumbled as he took out a see-through bottle. "This is goat's blood" he said lifting it up. Most of the students paled and some of the girls looked like they were going to faint. "The animals don't have to be killed for this" Reed said lowering the bottle. "So we're not going to be sacrificing goats, something that's stereotypical in black magic" A majority of the students appeared relieved after hearing that but a blond haired figure looked displeased.

"How disappointing" Abraxas Malfoy drawled loudly. "At Durmstrang they allow slaughtering of animals in class" a lot of students broke out in chatter and Professor Reed looked at Malfoy with a disapproving expression.

"Really" Lestrange said with an excited tone. "I thought that was a rumour"

"Allow slaughtering" Goyle whispered with a horrified expression. "They kill people in class"

"I'm glad father didn't send me there" Crabbe said with an equally horrified expression as he tightened the hold on his arm cast.

"Weren't you two idiots listening" Avery said rolling his eyes. "They permit animal sacrifice, not human"

"Quiet" the professor said raising his hands but everyone didn't seem to have heard.

"Evil Slytherin" A Gryffindor suddenly called out and Hermione noticed Tom's neatly folded hands slightly twitch. Was that a response to the words? But Slytherin's were called evil on a regular basis so why would it affect him all of a sudden? No, it couldn't be that. He was probably reminiscing about the punching incident.

"For a bunch of saintly do-gooders you Gryffindors are hypocritical" Malfoy said raising his voice. "You see no problem in killing to eat meat, and yet you see it as evil if they're killed for magical purposes" he finished with laughter and most of the Slytherin's joined in.

"That's enough, Mr Malfoy" Reed said with a magically magnified voice.

"It's not the same thing" Xavian shouted from the back of the greenhouse.

"Do explain, Potter" Malfoy said turning to face him. "Either way the animal is put to death so what is different?"

"The intention you evil son of a-"

"Language, Potter" Reed snapped and most people jumped hearing the magically enhanced voice.

"The intention" Malfoy drawled with a look of disbelief. "It doesn't matter why you're doing it or how it's done, in the end it's the act that counts"

"Enough of this" the professor said raising his voice and the students close by covered their ears.

"Not true" Xavian yelled and most of the Gryffindors voiced their support.

"Silence, my class is not a place to battle house enmities" Reed yelled and the students covered their ears again. "Malfoy, Potter, detention tomorrow at five" the handing out of punishment made the class go quiet and Xavian murderously glared at Malfoy.

"Whatever way you look at it the fact that the act happened is unchangeable" Malfoy said defiantly. "Therefore the circumstances and reasons are meaningless" he finished with a sneer.

"You can't ignore the-" Xavian started hotly.

"One more word out of either of you and you'll find yourself in front of, Dippet" Reed interrupted with an angry voice and Potter and Malfoy became silent.

Hermione found herself agreeing that it wasn't evil to kill a goat as long as it wasn't for the sheer pleasure draining its life. If it was serving a purpose then it was justified, but she didn't agree that the circumstances and reasons were completely meaningless because they decided if the act was acceptable or not. If the greater good didn't outweigh the evil to be committed then there would be no difference between the sinner and the punisher.

Hermione suddenly noticed Tom's hands were coiled into fists and she looked up to find his eyes closed. He appeared to be breathing deeply and every few seconds his calm expression became disrupted by the slight creasing of his brows. Everyone had left their seats to get a sansiveera but he didn't seem to be aware of it and busy watching him she remained as she was. Did something happen now to put him in this state? She was certain no one had said anything to him or gone near him, and the only thing that'd recently happened was the verbal battle between Malfoy and Xavian. There was no way the issue of goats being slaughtered had affected him. He killed owls mercilessly just to relieve anger, and he'd once told her to try large animals instead of spiders because you could see the life drain out of their eyes. Spiders were like insects, they had a high fate of being crushed and using magic on them didn't seem like a big thing. But to selfishly torture and kill animals that weren't pests and were highly developed in their senses was cruel. The mention of murder being the same as it was through any circumstances couldn't have gotten to him either. Everything she'd seen and knew about Voldemort said he relished in killing and circumstances and reasons definitely didn't have a say if he wanted someone dead, otherwise he wouldn't have heartlessly killed his muggle family.

Tom must be still affected by the punch, the wound might not have healed yet and the pain was most likely getting to him. Collective with his fiery anger it was probably making him more unstable by the second and this must be his attempt at some sort of meditation to calm himself. Hermione got up and the sound of her stool scraping against the floor awakened Tom. He gave her a glare worthy of making someone drop dead and she hurried to the back of the greenhouse. Throughout the whole class the heir of Slytherin remained silent and he visually displayed his anger by handling the equipment with much more force than necessary. The students closest to them had noticed and distanced themselves as much as possible. She'd tried to make herself scarce but she'd brought herself to attention by accidentally dropping a hand spade. Tom had picked it up like a right gentleman but the effect was ruined when he embedded into the table an inch away from her hand. For the rest of the other afternoon classes his volatile mood remained and she was careful to avoid anything that'd give him a reason to start a fight.

After the last class of the day Hermione went down to the library. With the murder planning and the useless research she'd done at lunchtime she was well behind her homework schedule. She sat down at a table and opened her bag. She was about to pull out a fresh roll of parchment when she paused. The desire to know the cause of Tom's condition was eating away at the back of her mind. It wasn't important and she shouldn't care but her burning curiosity wouldn't go away.

She'd decided against further investigation as she had to give her undivided attention to the murder plan and she already had her hands full with school work. But right now seemed like the perfect opportunity and the only opportunity she'd get in a very long time. Progress couldn't be made on the broom cursing potion until she obtained the Solanum nicrum and she already had enough knowledge to get exceeding expectations in tests and essays. If she were to get a few hours behind on homework it wouldn't set her back that much, she'd just have to skip next day's lunchtime and dinner as most of the deadlines were fast approaching. So, should she go down to the restricted section now or do her homework as planned? Hermione undecidedly stared ahead for a few seconds and then she shut her bag. With excitement bubbling in her stomach she got up and walked to the front of the library.

She located Madam Barnes and the librarian appeared to be reading a long scroll with her head bent down. There weren't many students here and no one seemed to be at the back. Excellent, just the conditions she needed. Hermione found a deserted area that was saturated with shadows before disillusioning herself and then she crept over to the restricted section. After looking sideways and over her shoulders she ducked under the rope that divided it from the rest of the library and drew her wand. Already familiar with books from here she knew it was crucial to use enchantment disabling spells on them before reading, otherwise it could scream the place down, bite off your fingers and in worse cases you could actually end up getting cursed with something dark. Accompanied by a lot of wand waving Hermione began to search through the relevant books and an hour later she stood staring at the shelves with a need to scream loudly.

She settled for digging her nails into the cover of a book called, uses of blood in magic most evil, and then she attempted to sloppily push it back onto the top shelf. Before reaching its destination it slightly opened and to her shock it let out a whispery laugh that sounded very human. She jumped back and the book dropped wide open. A shadowy apparition began to rise from the pages and with her heart beating fast she closed the hardback with a flick of her wand. Damn it, that had almost scared her. The enchantment disabling spell had obviously worn off, she should have realised as it had been amongst the books she'd read when she'd started her search. She refreshed her spell on the hardback and then she put it back in its place.

Hermione hung her bag on her shoulder before leaving the restricted section with an angry look and as she left the library she massaged her aching right wrist. She couldn't believe the books of forbidden dark magic didn't have any information on Tom's condition. If only she hadn't given into her curious nature, she'd wasted her time for nothing when it hadn't even been important. As Hermione turned into a corridor a flying owl on a painting caught her eyes and she stopped walking. Ah yes, that reminded her she'd meant to write to Xavian. A man in a suit of armour suddenly appeared on the canvas and she blinked startled.

"Are you lost fair maiden?" he asked.

"Sir Cadogan" she blurted out as she recognised him from her past. The knight had once helped Harry, Ron and her find the divinations classroom.

"Finally, my reputation has reached the ears of man" Sir Cadogan said dramatically drawing his sword. "Let it be known that no challenge or quest is too big or small for me" the armour clad figure said spreading his arms. "How can I be off service?" he said attempting to bow and the sword dropped from his hand. Sir Cadogan bent down to pick it up but he was so clumsy he ended up on the floor beside it.

"Thanks- thank you" she said automatically changing the word without realising. "But I'm not in need of any assistance" she continued as she turned away from the frame.

"Farewell, my lady" the knight called out. "If ever you have the need of a noble heart and steely sinew call upon Sir Cadogan" Hermione couldn't help but slightly smile as she walked away. Sir Cadogan was still the same as before, actually he'd remained the same in the future because technically she was in the past.

At the owlery she held a hand sized piece of parchment against the wall and with her quill she began writing on it. When she was finished it read - Your apology is accepted. However I cannot accompany you to Hogsmeade as I do not have signed permission from my guardian, this is because my parents have passed away and I'm not officially under anyone's care but thanks thank you for the offer. Kindest regards, Maya Granger. Hermione folded the note and inscribed Xavian Potter on one of the sides. Then she tied it to the leg of an owl nearest to her and after lazily ruffling its feathers the bird took off with a hoot.

She made her way to the heads quarters and found Persephone and her husband present at the painting guarding the entrance. Hades appeared to be asleep and the goddess was all fixed up but still in a sour mood. Hermione entered the heads common room and noticing Tom she momentarily froze before shutting the door as quietly as possible. She cautiously took a few steps forward and sneakily looked at him. He was sitting cross legged on the floor in front of the fireplace and his hands were neatly placed in his lap. She couldn't detect any emotion on his face and he seemed to be staring into the flames unblinking. God knows what was wrong with him, whatever it was he deserved it. Trying not to disturb Tom she tiptoed up the stairs and silently slipped into her room.

At 6 pm Hermione arrived outside Slughorn's office for her weekly detention and knocked on the door.

"Come in" The professor's voice sounded. Ready to greet him she stepped inside with a smile and it faltered when she saw Tom sitting in front of Slughorn's desk. The dark lord turned his head to look at her and his eyes slightly narrowed before losing interest. Great, as if the whole afternoon of enduring his angry mood wasn't enough. What the hell was he doing here? She suddenly remembered Susan saying he'd gotten a month's detention for hitting Xavian. So it was either coincidence or her bad luck that they were going be serving it together, more likely the second reason because fate seemed to prefer her being miserable.

"Miss Granger, right on time as usual" Slughorn said cheerfully as he pointed his wand towards an empty chair and it began to drag itself forward. The chair halted next to Tom and he visibly tensed. "Sit down" the professor said gesturing at it and the dark lord's hands slowly balled into fists. Hermione remained as she was while an uncomfortable expression appeared on her face, she knew Tom didn't want her to sit so close and she had no desire to do so either. "Is there a problem, Miss Granger?" Slughorn said remaining oblivious to their discomfort.

"No professor" she forced out and taking a deep breath she made herself walk up to the chair. Before she lost her nerve she quickly sat on it and the heir of Slytherin immediately clutched his elbows. Sneaking sideway glances she noticed Tom rubbing his fingers up and down in slow motion and it was like he was itching to hug himself. Was his mysterious condition causing him pain right now? She didn't like being close to him but if this was hurting him then it was almost worth it.

The professor opened a pack of assorted fudge and popped one into his mouth. This kind of sight was familiar to her, Slughorn was always eating something sugary and it was no wonder he put on weight in her time.

"Help yourselves" Slughorn said placing the packet on the centre of the desk and Hermione took a vanilla flavoured one but Tom remained as he was. "Don't be shy my boy" he said pushing the paper container towards the dark lord.

"No, thank you" Tom said slightly nodding his head.

"Health conscious, eh" Slughorn said taking another fudge. "Good, good" he said giving the head boy a smile before putting it into his mouth. "At this age I can afford to indulge a little" he said gently patting his stomach and his smile transformed into a grin. Hermione suddenly felt out of place. Normally it was just her and Slughorn chatting away while she did whatever task he'd assigned but with Tom here it was just awkward. "I almost forgot" the professor said suddenly leaning towards her. "You'll be surprised to know, Maximus Donovan is still alive" he finished with a conspiratorial tone and she accidentally swallowed the piece of fudge in her mouth.

"What?" Hermione said in between coughing. "How?" she asked with an expression of disbelief.

Last week the prophet had devoted pages on the mysterious disappearance of Maximus Donovan, one of the senior members of the wizengamot and they had been theorising that Grindelwald was behind it. At her previous detention session Slughorn had given her inside information about Maximus's bloody clothes being found and how the aurors believed him to be dead.

"My contact at the auror department told me yesterday" Slughorn said in an excited gossipy tone. "They found him tied up at a muggle house in London"

"Do the Prophet-" She started.

"No" Slughorn interrupted. "There are strict orders not to tell them"

"Did Grindelwald's followers kidnap him?" she questioned while unconsciously touching her wand.

"Nothing's been confirmed yet, Donovan's still being questioned" the professor said leaning back into his chair and his eyes suddenly widened. "Tom my boy!" he exclaimed sitting up and Hermione slightly jumped but the heir of Slytherin remained as he was. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to leave you out" Slughorn said sounding distressed and a guilty expression showed on his face.

"There's no need to apologise, sir" Tom said warmly and he flashed a charming smile. Slughorn's look of guilt immediately transformed to reflect happiness and relief and she couldn't help but marvel at the whiteness of the dark lord's teeth. "I didn't feel left out at all" he said slightly tilting his head to the left and Hermione was sure she'd heard an annoyed undertone. Ah, looks like the dark lord was jealous of the attention she'd gotten. A smug feeling spread through her and she wanted to smile at him tauntingly but knowing the mood he was in it would be suicide so she resisted. "I've been following the story so far in the prophet" Tom said sounding indifferent. "This new development was most unexpected" he said un-tilting his head. "Only someone of your importance could know such a thing before the public, sir" he continued with a tone of admiration.

"Well, I -I guess I am in an advantageous position than the average wizard" Slughorn said puffing out his chest with a proud expression. Flattery always worked to win over Slughorn and she wanted to roll her eyes at Tom's blatant attempt to sway him. Honestly, he didn't have to feel so threatened. It's not like Slughorn was going to ditch the most intelligent student of Hogwarts for her, but then again Tom had probably never been overlooked and the sudden change was making him overreact. "Fortunately you don't have to be here next week like Miss Granger-" the professor said and she looked down in mock shame. "-but if I get more information I'll owl you"

"That's very kind of you, sir" the heir of Slytherin said with a grateful expression.

"It's really no burden at all my boy" Slughorn said waving a hand dismissively. "Now, it's not every day that I get two of my best students in detention-" he said leaning forward. "-so I'm going to take advantage of the situation" he finished lowering his voice.

The head boy strengthened the grip on his elbows and Hermione's eyes widened. What was Slughorn going to make them do? Why did he particularly need her and Tom for it? The professor leaned back with a mischievous look and the silence was heavy with tension as they waited for him to elaborate. He suddenly chuckled causing Hermione to blink several times and the dark lord's hands slightly shook. "I bet your both thinking I'm going to make you do something horrible" Slughorn said raising his wand. "Fear not" he added in a cheery voice. "I save the unpleasant tasks for my least favourite students" he said waving his stick towards a shelf behind him and three boxes levitated onto the desk. The professor opened them and dozens of scrolls could be seen inside each. "Sixth year potions essays" Slughorn said pushing two boxes forward. "I want them all marked and I'm sure you're both more than capable" he continued with a warm smile.

The young dark lord slowly released his elbows and Hermione breathed out in was such an easy task, she'd been afraid Slughorn would ask them to do something that'd involve physical contact with each other and she was sure Tom had feared the same thing.

Silence descended on the room as they started marking the essays and Slughorn became busy reading a scroll from the third box he'd kept to himself. The only things disturbing the quietness was the scratching of quills and a rustling sound whenever the professor removed a fudge from the pack. Hermione's quill suddenly ran out of ink and as she replenished the supply she looked up. Slughorn was still reading and Tom was soundlessly sliding his chair away from hers. He stopped after a few centimetres and realising she was watching he glared at her. She immediately looked away and carried on like nothing had happened.

After some time Hermione started to read another scroll. There was a mistake in the first sentence and she wrote the correct answer above it in red letters. Halfway through the essay she paused, she hadn't been aware of it before but there was a faint spicy aroma in the air. It was nice and kind of soothing. She inhaled deeply and recognised the top note as the scent of cloves. She was sure she'd come across the fragrance before but she couldn't remember where and after thinking about it for a few seconds she resumed reading. A word was hard to make out and she tilted her head to the right to get a better angle. The spicy perfume grew significantly strong and suddenly realising what that meant she held her breath. Merlin, it was coming from Tom. She couldn't like the way the dark lord smelt, it was just wrong and sick. Hermione knew she couldn't hold her breath forever but she stubbornly waited until her body became desperate for oxygen. Then she turned her head to the left and reluctantly inhaled. Trying not to register what was meeting her nostrils she focused all her attention on reading and attempted to speed up the marking to leave as soon as possible.

Hermione was at the end of marking her tenth essay when Slughorn started to talk about a witch called Celestina Warbeck and how she was a talented singer. "Miss Granger, have you heard one of Celestina's songs?" the professor suddenly asked.

"Cauldron full of hot strong love" she said without thinking and a long silence followed her words. She looked up to find Slughorn staring at her open mouthed and Tom had an expression of mild interest but he was still occupied with his marking. Why was Slughorn looking at her like that? Did she say something wrong?

"Celestina is planning to release that song on Valentine's Day" the professor said regaining his composure. "How do you know of it when it hasn't been made public? Hermione's breath caught in her throat, how could she not have realised Celestina was a newcomer in the 1940s and the song was yet to be released.

"Erm-" she said trying to think of a good excuse. "One of my friends showed me the lyrics, her mother probably knows Celestina or someone close to her"

"I see" Slughorn said with a smile and stilling his quill the dark lord looked at her.

"How could you have heard the song by just looking at the lyrics?" Tom said accusingly and her heart skipped a beat while Slughorn's expression turned questioning. Oh God, she hadn't noticed how flawed her answer was but being a bloody genius he had. She pretended to cough as she racked her brains for a believable lie and the heir of Slytherin raised an eyebrow with suspicion written all over his face.

"My friend sang it to me" she finally said in the most truthful voice she could manage. "She wrote down the lyrics so she wouldn't forget" Hermione faked a cough again so it wouldn't look like she'd done it before to stall.

"Ah, that makes sense" Slughorn said as he took another fudge from the pack and Tom resumed writing with his quill. Feeling relieved she went back to her marking and the next time Slughorn asked her something she was careful with her reply. It wasn't long before he started conversing with the dark lord, and as she realised Tom's questions were mainly intellectual she felt annoyed that the professor thought she was mostly good for discussing gossipy things.

Thirty minutes had passed when Hermione took out the last unmarked essay from her box and after reading the first paragraph she couldn't concentrate. Slughorn had just asked Tom's opinion on a new potions theory and his lengthy reply was demanding her interest. The more she listened to the knowledge pouring out of him the more captivated she became, such information couldn't be found in books but only in the minds of geniuses. Hermione knew she shouldn't like anything about the dark lord but at the moment she couldn't help admiring his brilliance. Tom finished marking his box before her and while Slughorn kept him talking she managed to get hers done a minute later.

"You're free to fly off" Slughorn said levitating the boxes back onto the shelf. "Bet you two can't wait to get out of here" he added with a huge smile.

"Not at all, sir" Tom said putting his quill away. "Your company is the most enjoyable"

"I'm glad you find it so my boy" he said cheerfully. "Five points to Slytherin for excellent marking"

"Thank you, sir" the dark lord said standing up and dusting his robes.

"I too find your company pleasing professor" Hermione said feeling like she should say something. Then she wished she hadn't when Slughorn looked at her like he'd forgotten her existence and as seconds stretched by in silence she felt smaller and smaller with each one.

"Ah, that's good to hear, Miss Granger" the professor finally said before starting to talk to the head boy again. That's it. That's all he's going to say to me, Hermione thought throwing her quill and inkpot into her bag and then she shut it with more force than necessary. He's glad Tom likes his company but he only finds it nice to hear she likes his company. He'd given Tom house points for good marking when he hadn't even seen what his marking was like but she hadn't gotten any. Angrily creasing her brows she stood up and hung the bag on her shoulder before realising the dark lord was looking in her direction. She expected to see one of his taunting half smiles any second now but his face remained expressionless.

"I would like to stay longer, professor, but I have an essay to write" he said looking back at Slughorn and for a moment she was puzzled by his triumphant-less behaviour before remembering the kind of day he was having.

"I won't delay you further my boy" Slughorn said leaping out his chair and he rushed towards the door before holding it wide open.

"You shouldn't have troubled yourself, professor, but thank you" he said moving towards the exit and she followed.

"It's no trouble at all my boy" the professor said cheerfully. "Do drop by when you have time"

"I will try, sir" the dark lord said and he suddenly stopped walking. He stepped aside and turned towards her. "After you" Tom said gesturing towards the door with a slight bow of his head and she blinked surprised. She hadn't expected such treatment but with Slughorn here he obviously had to keep up his nice boy act.

"O ho, proper gentleman as always" Slughorn said with a booming voice and he smiled widely. "Come on then, Miss Granger" he said winking at her and she walked through the door with an unhappy look. "Don't work too hard my boy" Slughorn called out. "Have a good evening both of you" he added with a suggestive tone.

"You too professor" she heard Tom say and it was followed by the sound of Slughorn's office door closing.

It was obvious to Hermione what Slughorn had been thinking and that was the cause of her current expression. How everyone always jumped to the conclusion that she was having a secret relationship with Tom was beyond her. People just don't change overnight, if the dark lord hadn't bothered to form any kind of a relationship with anyone for the rest of his life what made them think he would suddenly make an exception for her? Why did people never notice the distance between them, the fact that they were forced to work together or their arguments? They didn't even remotely resemble a couple, but people like Susan loved to invent things and jump to wild conclusions just to indulge their fantasies. Tom was the most antisocial student at Hogwarts, and since he'd never shown an interest in a girl or a boy he was clearly asexual, so why didn't anyone notice these things?

A startling thought suddenly occurred to her. What if his so called asexuality was due to physical limitations caused by his strange condition? Had she been wrong about him the whole time? Perhaps she had been, no she hadn't made a mistake in her judgement.

If he couldn't touch he could certainly watch. From her experience men couldn't help themselves from glancing at displayed cleavage, even if it was just the once. Especially teenage boys, the amount of times she'd caught Ron staring at her in her nightgown when she'd stayed at the burrow was uncountable. Each time he'd blushed red to his ears and avoided her for hours. Whenever it was Harry it seemed like his hormones had forced his eyes there because he always looked away immediately with a guilty expression. She'd even seen Neville looking at her slight cleavage at the Yule ball, when he'd realised he'd been caught he'd looked ashamed and almost tripped over his dress robes. Draco Malfoy had given her a furious look after a sneaky glance that he thought she wouldn't notice, like it was her fault he'd looked at the chest of a girl with impure blood. Victor Krum had been the worst of them all, he'd spent most of the dance with his eyes downwards and her dress's neckline had been pretty decent compared to the far revealing dress she'd worn at the 1940s Halloween ball.

That night Tom had restricted his eyes from straying below her shoulders, and since she wasn't exactly what men highly desired she couldn't really use that against him. But there were other people at Hogwarts that were drop dead gorgeous and she'd never seen him pay attention to them at the ball or any other day. Nothing was preventing him from looking but he obviously wasn't interested in looking at anyone in that way because he didn't desire them like that, and that could only be explained by asexuality. Besides, if the condition was the cause of it he would've changed when he got cured and lord Voldemort certainly hadn't had any kind of a relationship with anyone. Dumbledore had been right, he didn't want to love anyone but himself and that's why he'd remained alone throughout his whole life.

Tom suddenly appeared by her side and she figured his long strides had made him unintentionally catch up. As they took a few steps together she couldn't help but notice the wide gap between them. Before she'd thought he distanced himself because he hated being near people but now there was a possibility he was forced to behave like that. Wondering how the curse or whatever he had actually worked she tried to sneak a glance at his chest, but all she managed was a side view of his shoulder before his long legs helped him get ahead of her.

"Excuse me" a voice suddenly called out and Tom and Hermione halted. "I-I have-erm-" they both turned towards the right sidewall of the corridor. Roughly in the middle there was an entrance to another passageway and a girl wearing Gryffindor robes stood there with her hands behind her back.

"You have what, Boleyn?" Tom said coldly and the girl opened and closed her mouth. "Speak-" he commanded. "-or do you need to be given detention to loosen your tongue" he continued with a raised voice as he moved towards Boleyn.

"It's-it's n-not for you" the girl stuttered and she took a few steps in Hermione's direction.

"Show your hands" Tom ordered pointing his wand and the girl suddenly looked on the verge of tears. There was no need for Tom to scare her like that and as much as Hermione wanted to she wasn't going interfere. She didn't need another 'don't ever undermine my authority' lecture which would definitely be followed by him beating her to a pulp. Boleyn slowly brought out her right hand and then the left one appeared holding a bunch of flowers.

"Potter told me to give these to her" the girl said in a low voice and she shakily held them towards the Ravenclaw head girl.

Hermione creased her forehead in annoyance. Why couldn't Xavian understand she wasn't interested in him? She'd just rejected his offer of going to Hogsmeade and instead of backing of he sends her goddamn flowers. She was about to reluctantly take them when Tom grabbed a flower, the girl let go in fright and the entire bunch tilted to one side as he continued to hold it up by the single bloom.

"Worthless carnations that a first year could conjure" he said with a distasteful expression as he rotated the bunch. "And they aren't even done properly" he said crushing the flower with his fingers and pink petals rained onto the floor. "Tell Potter to perfect basic spells before attempting to duel wizards superior to him" the dark lord said raising his voice and he threw the bunch at Boleyn's feet. The girl jumped back looking scared and then silence followed as no one moved. "Give them to her then" Tom suddenly shouted and Boleyn visibly shivered before scrambling to her feet. She tried picking up the flowers but in her panicked state they kept dropping from her hands. To save her from further misery Hermione bent down to take them and the second her hand closed around it the girl ran off.

When she stood back straight she realised Tom was missing and she turned to see the back his tall form moving away. As she followed after him she inspected the flowers and she wasn't impressed by them in the slightest. The dark lord had been right in his assessment to say they weren't done properly. Out of the lot three or four flowers were deformed but it was hard to spot straightaway when you looked at the bunch as a whole. Faults aside they were just ordinary pink carnations and there was nothing magical about them. Suddenly she thought of Tom's magnificent roses. Merlin, they had been so beautiful. All glowing and bursting with magical glamour and Xavian obviously didn't have the skills to conjure something like that. As Hermione shifted the entire bunch to her left hand something attached at the bottom brushed her fingers. She looked to see it was a folded piece of paper with her name on it and after pulling it off she opened it. It read - Dear Maya, I was completely unaware of your circumstance. I'm so sorry for your loss and any unpleasantness I have caused by asking. If you require anything from Hogsmeade please do not hesitate to ask, hope you like the flowers. Your friend, Xavian. Hermione scrunched the note and threw it into one of the large burning torches in the corridor. His repeated use of the word friend wasn't fooling her, he was obviously trying to take things slow and hoping she would change her mind in the end. Wishing he would lose interest she adjusted her hold on the flowers and continued to walk forward.

An icy breeze suddenly touched her head and Hermione looked up startled. Her eyes met a translucent floating body and she immediately recognised it as Peeves, the trouble causing resident poltergeist. It silently speed forward and grabbed Tom's bag off his shoulder. He spun around with his wand drawn and she froze with a feeling of dread. No no, the dark lord did not need to be put into an even angrier frame of mind. What the hell was up with fate today?

"Put it down" Tom ordered with a furious expression.

"Put it down" Peeves repeated mockingly and a nasty smile spread across its face. "Make me, make me. You can't make me" the poltergeist started to sing as it flew higher up with the bag firmly held in its grasp.

"Accio bag" the dark lord roared and the bag violently jerked towards him but the entity still held on. The enchanted item eventually dragged the poltergeist down and appearing unaffected by Peeves's arctic temperature Tom gripped the bottom of his bag. "Let go" he shouted trying to pull it off the entity. Peeves grinned and pulled the bag back with equal force. They struggled for a few seconds before the dark lord released his hold and stepped back. "Have it your way" Tom said venomously as he made a sweeping motion with his wand and the bag began to crash into walls, the floor and the ceiling at speed. The entity screamed as it was flung about with the spelled item and it tried to hold onto something with its free hand. As the bag hit a wall close to Hermione the poltergeist made a grab for her robes and she jumped back. In desperation Peeves managed to grip her flowers but it didn't provide an anchor as she let go of them with chattering teeth. The entity let out a loud cry as it collided into a wall and it suddenly dropped the carnations. They skidded down the concrete barrier and into a large bowl sized flaming torch. Hermione instinctively pointed her wand and pulled them out to find a mass of smoking brown black with some recognisable greens. The fumes started to make her cough and she took a step back.

"Evanesco" she said making the burnt carnations vanish. Oh well, it didn't really matter. She hadn't liked the flowers to begin with. Hermione suddenly noticed Tom staring in her direction while his wand hand was busy controlling the bag's movements. How the hell was he keeping his concentration on the spell? Magical multitasking, impressive. Actually, it wasn't really magical multitasking as looking at her wasn't anything supernatural but it was certainly multitasking while performing magic. Come to think of it Tom could magically multitask. She'd seen him simultaneously levitate objects countless times and he'd controlled five minds when he'd imperiused Malfoy and his crew into the classroom that night. She hated to admit it but the dark lord was magically extraordinary.

Peeves suddenly let go of the bag swearing and it immediately flew towards Tom. He snapped his eyes away from her and caught the strap with precision.

"You're no fun" the entity said floating up with a sour expression before sticking out its tongue.

"Don't ever touch my possessions" the heir of Slytherin shouted raising his wand.

"You don't scare-" Peeves's voice changed into a scream as Tom's spell threw the poltergeist out the corridor like a quaffle being blown away by a tornado.

He turned around before starting to walk away with speed and she followed at a slower pace. As the dark lord walked down a set of stairs he hung his bag back on his shoulder and her eyes became drawn to the strap. She noticed some of the material was peeling off and roughly in the middle there were a few holes. She progressed down to the bag to find it in an even worse state, and even though she'd never paid particular attention to it she was surprised she'd missed how much of a bad condition it was in.

"Contrary to popular belief I don't use a spell to hold it together" Tom suddenly said and she immediately looked elsewhere. How had he known she was staring at it? A lucky guess or the use of a freaky sixth sense, most likely the second one. As they approached the heads quarters the woman inside the painting guarding the entrance fixed them with a hateful stare and her husband was nowhere to be seen.

"Password" Persephone hissed.

"Medusa" Tom said icily and the goddess mumbled something inaudible. Being closer Tom must've heard what it was as he threw a spell at the canvas and Persephone ran off screaming.

He opened the door before disappearing inside and she walked in after him. The dark lord moved into the centre of the common room and stood facing the fireplace. Looks like he was going to resume his strange staring into the flames thing. Merlin, there were so many obvious things that the dark lord did that screamed mental case, but since he was a genius people must think he was entitled to a little craziness. Hermione turned left and started to walk towards the stairs.

"Granger" Tom suddenly called out and she froze. What did he want? Oh God, he must be mad at her for staring at his bag. She took in a deep breath and forced herself to turn back around. The heir of Slytherin was still gazing into the flames and he appeared calm but that didn't guarantee he wasn't angry. All of a sudden he drew his wand and her eyes widened. He slowly turned away from the fireplace and her pulse quickened as he took a couple of steps towards her. An unsure expression flickered across his face before he raised his wand and as he gave it a wave Hermione took in a sharp intake of breath.

A bunch of lilac chrysanthemums appeared out of thin air and a look of disbelief etched onto her face. The dark lord made a complex movement with his stick and the flowers began to glow and radiate an aura of sparkling dark purple. "Replacement for your flowers" Tom said holding them towards her and she soundlessly opened and closed her mouth like she hadn't understood a word he'd said. What in the name of bloody Merlin was going on here, she didn't want flowers from Voldemort but he'd surely get angry if she refused. Maybe if she kindly declined-. His expression suddenly darkened and Hermione quickly took them. Tom turned back towards the fireplace and she hastily climbed the stairs to her room before rushing inside.

She dumped her bag on the floor and holding up the flowers she sat on her bed. She traced a petal of one of the chrysanthemums and watched in fascination as its purple glow spilled onto her skin. They were all so gorgeous and unbelievably flawless, even the stems and leaves were done to perfection. Hermione suddenly snapped out of her fixation and put them down. Why the hell had Tom conjured her flowers? At the time she'd been too taken aback to pay attention to what he'd said but she was sure of having heard the word replacement. If so then why had he felt the need to replace her carnations? Well, it was kind of his fault they'd gotten destroyed because his spell had been dragging peeves around. No bloody way, with anyone else it would've made perfect sense but she refused to believe the dark lord had given her new flowers because he'd felt a little bad. There must be an ulterior motive but what could it be?

Maybe she was reading this whole thing wrong, he'd gotten his bag back and defeated the poltergeist so it could be a result of him being in a better mood. When things went his way Tom could be kind of-erm-nice. Like the time he'd washed blood from her face and attached a Halloween decoration for her when she couldn't reach high up. Crap, what was she thinking? Did she just use the word nice to describe lord Voldemort? He was nothing but horrible and manipulative. Now that she used her brains a little more she could see there'd been reasons behind those so a called kind actions.

When he'd been cleaning her face he was trying to cement a couple of points into her mind, like how she should never disagree with him in public or interfere with whatever control he'd managed to gain over Hogwarts. Tom must've thought he'd appear more intimidating if he made some sort of contact with her but he'd obviously regretted the decision when he accidentally touched her cheek. It was evident now that his condition had caused him pain, no wonder he'd left in a hurry without wanting his handkerchief back. Helping her attach the decoration was just him acting as the kind and helpful head boy. Anyone could've seen him in the great hall, especially the professors and he'd had an image to maintain. So basically if Tom did anything that appeared nice or kind there always had a hidden personal gain for him. She didn't know what it was with the bunch of chrysanthemums but he must be getting something out of it.

Hermione picked up the flowers again and drew her wand. She hadn't exactly had a choice but she couldn't help feel like she'd done something wrong by accepting them. She didn't have to keep Voldemort's creation though, it's not like he would know. She positioned her wand and was about to make them disappear when she froze. The flowers were just so beautiful that she couldn't bring herself to do it, would it really be awful to keep them a little longer? Tom's roses had stayed by her bedside overnight so there couldn't be any harm in letting the chrysanthemums stay till tomorrow.

Lowering her wand she got on her feet and walked up to the window sill. She put the flowers inside an empty vase and then she suddenly felt guilty. Hermione hesitantly placed her hands on the sides of the pot and staring at the many petals of glowing wonder she thought to get rid of them once again. But it's not like they were going to last forever and it would be such a waste of these marvellous chrysanthemums if she destroyed them now. Releasing the vase she took a step back before reconsidering what she was doing and in the end she decided to let them stay. Hermione turned away from the window and brought out her textbooks. Soon she became so lost in doing homework that all thoughts of the flowers disappeared from her mind.

At 8 pm she decided it was late enough to go to Hogsmeade. She changed into a black dress before putting on her hooded cloak and then she grabbed her bag. Hermione opened the door a crack and peeped into the common room. She was annoyed to find Longbottom and Bones chatting away near the window. They'd definitely get suspicious if they saw her in outdoor clothes so it was best to wait until they left. After a while of killing time she started to get impatient, it was dinner time now so why weren't they going down to the great hall? She suddenly became aware being hungry. Too bad she'd have to skip dinner but going to Hogsmeade was much more important than food.

Bones and Longbottom started to head towards the door and Hermione silently mouthed the word yes. Before either of them could touch the handle it moved and a second later Tom entered with his head bent down. He turned towards his room and made to climb the stairs.

"Riddle" Longbottom called making him pause and turn. "Am I doing one, two and four or five, six and seven?"

"I will do one, two and four" Tom said looking up. "Three will be shared as usual, is that understood?"

"Understood" Longbottom said nodding his head.

What were they talking about? For the life of her she couldn't understand what the numbers meant. Tom turned back and started to climb up the stairs. Was the heir of Slytherin skipping dinner? It was likely since he'd had a horrible day, or he might go down later to stare at his food and eat a few morsels. He seemed to have been looking at the floor when he'd come in so he was either upset or deep in thought, maybe the latter. Longbottom opened the common room door as the dark lord disappeared into his room and then he stepped aside.

"After you, Mrs Longbottom" he whispered winking at Bones and she giggled.

"You can call me Mrs Longbottom all you want but you're not getting the full package until you put a ring on this finger" she said waving her left hand.

"You wound me with your words" Longbottom said clutching at his chest with a mock sad expression. "How can you think my desire to marry you is based on physical gratification alone?"

Looks like Bones had been telling the truth, they really hadn't slept together but the way she'd come out with her clothes on inside out had strongly indicated the opposite. She should really avoid going into his room and taking her clothes off. It just wasn't proper and there were only so many times one could resist temptation.

"You can stop acting now" Bones said playfully slapping at his hands.

"I'm serious" Longbottom said grabbing one of her wrists. "I love you" he said pulling her hand up to his lips and then he planted a kiss on it.

"Me too" she said in a low voice before trying to pull her hand back but Longbottom wouldn't release his hold. "Let go" she said attempting to pull it back again.

"No" Longbottom said moving closer to her.

"Someone might come" Bones said glancing at the open door.

"I don't hear anyone" he said wrapping an arm around her waist and her cheeks flushed deep pink.

"Still, I don't think-" He cut her off by crashing his lips onto hers and she let out a moan of protest before giving in. After a couple of seconds they broke apart and Bones rested her head on his chest.

"I'm not that hungry, we could go down a little later" Longbottom said tracing circles on her back. "My pillow is missing you very much" he said lowering his voice.

"What part of never again didn't you understand" Bones said pushing him away.

"I promise I won't get carried away"

"It's not right, we have to control ourselves"

"Just let me see you one more time" Longbottom said pleadingly. "I haven't been able to sleep"

"Take a cold shower or something"

"You're cruel" he said looping his arm around hers.

"I love torturing you" she said smiling at him and he gave her chaste kiss on the lips. A toothy grin appeared on her face and then she looked down with a shy expression. It suddenly became troubled and she looked up with wide eyes. "William, I forgot to tell you something" she said sounding afraid. "When I-when I-"

"Cynthia, what is it?"

"When I left your room Granger saw me" Bones said in a rushed voice.

"What?" Longbottom said letting go of her.

"We're going to be ruined when this gets out" she said looking on the verge of tears.

"Granger can't prove anything" Longbottom said running a hand through his hair.

"My robes were on inside out, she'd have to be blind not to have noticed" Bones said throwing her hands up. "Forget the clothes, coming out of your room is enough to make us look guilty" she said placing a hand on her forehead.

"If she tells we'll just deny it" Longbottom said holding her shoulders reassuringly.

"I called her evil" she said shakily. "I told her I didn't mean it and she said she wouldn't tell but I'm sure Granger was lying"

"It's her word against ours, no one's going to believe her without evidence"

"It doesn't matter if it's true or not" Bones almost hissed. "Once a rumour gets started people tend to believe it and then-" Bones covered her face with her hands. "-and then everyone's going to think I'm a whore" she continued tearfully.

"That's not true and no one's going to call you that" Longbottom said pulling her hands away. "Don't worry" he said hugging her. "Brewer's the only person Granger talks to and no one ever takes that girl seriously"

"I hope you're right" Bones mumbled into his chest.

"Let's go eat, don't stress over it" Longbottom said pulling her towards the door and soon they left the common room hand in hand. Hermione felt kind of bad for Bones worrying like that. She wasn't a horrible rumour spreading person and true to her words she wasn't going to tell anyone.

She put on a disillusionment charm and after it had set in she quickly left the heads quarters. On the third floor she walked up to the statue of the one eyed witch and touched her wand against the hump shaped part.

"Dissendium" she said taping it and the hump opened up. She looked back and forth to make sure she was alone and then she climbed inside. After closing the entrance she lit her wand and found herself in front of a tunnel. Hermione cautiously lowered herself and slid down it. She shortly arrived at a damp smelling passageway and dusting her clothes she stood up. As she walked forward she noticed the walls were littered with cobwebs and once in a while she came across dark patches that could've been moss or mould. The path seemed to be never ending and she started to hum to kill of the boredom. Almost an hour had gone by when she arrived beneath the trap door in the ceiling and as she tried to climb through it her clothes made it difficult. Hermione wished she could have worn trousers but in the 1940s wizarding world it was unacceptable for a girl. After a lengthy struggle she managed to pull herself through and land on her hands and knees. As she straightened she saw many boxes and after reading some of the labels she had confirmation of being in the cellar of Honeydukes.

On the other side of the room she found a staircase and climbed up it. The short landing platform led to a door and she placed her ear against it. She listened for some time but there seemed to be nothing but silence on the other side. Hermione sceptically turned the door knob and was surprised to find it wasn't locked. As she stepped through the entrance the interior of the shop met her eyes. There were numerous shelves filled with jars and boxes of sweets and chocolates, and at the front there seemed to be statues made of white chocolate and jelly. Realising someone might notice through the windows she extinguished her wand light and after carefully navigating herself she found the front door.

It was locked and she tried a few spells but it remained shut. Hermione cast a powerful scanning spell and came across a complex blocking ward. She tried to undo it but it wouldn't budge. Creasing her brows in concentration she tried a different spell and after about a minute she managed to remove it. She looked out the window to make sure the pathway was clear and then she opened the door. A blast of cold wind hit her in the face and bowing her head she quickly stepped outside. She turned to shut the door before casting a simple locking charm, then she un-disillusioned herself and re-lit her wand. Slightly shivering she began to walk down the road and a triumphant smile slowly appeared on her face, she'd made it into Hogsmeade without getting caught.

The village was alike and different at the same time. The layout was almost unchanged and most of the trees and houses from her time were here but with a younger look. A building that she knew as the three broomsticks came into view and she halted. The sign overhead had the same name and it looked a lot cleaner. The entire exterior seemed to be free of dirt and the paint wasn't cracked or peeling away. Hermione drew closer to the window and saw crowds of people inside. A group at the front were laughing, everyone on the table at the back appeared to be gambling, and a couple were dancing in a corner but most of the people seemed to be drinking away without a care in the world. Unlike her they didn't know of the horrors to come or have the duty of murdering a future dark lord. She doubted anyone in there had felt the pain and grief she'd experienced. As memories of being in the three broomsticks with Harry and Ron rushed through her mind her eyes welled up with tears and she wiped them away with her sleeves. The front door suddenly creaked open and she snapped out of her reminiscence.

She turned to find a little girl that seemed about two years old crawl outside. The toddler suddenly fell flat on her face but instead of crying she got up laughing. Noticing the older girl the tot went quiet and started to stare at her fearfully. A man appeared at the door and threw it wide open.

"Rosmerta, silly child" he said taking the little one into his arms and Hermione's eyes widened. She knew she was in the past but it was still shocking to know that this little girl was the same Rosmerta that'd served her drinks. "I apologise if my daughter gave you any trouble" the man said looking up.

"Not at all, sir" she said turning to leave and then she continued on her journey through Hogsmeade.

Hermione stopped in front of where the shrieking shack should be and thought it was strange to find barren land in its place. It was almost like the plot was cursed or something, maybe that was the reason why people readily believed all the rumours without evidence when a house was built there. Recalling more memories she resumed walking and as the wind blew strongly she tightened the hold on her cloak. It suddenly started to snow lightly and after a while she cast a warming charm but it didn't greatly raise the temperature. Finding a row of shops she paused but the ones that sold potion ingredients were closed. She walked on hoping to find a place that was open and as she came across one closed shop after the other she started to get upset. With a distressed expression she glanced at her wristwatch to find it was 9.40 pm. Merlin, it was night time. Unless someone had stayed open till late she was doomed.

At 10.00 pm it was starting to look hopeless until Hermione discovered an open shop hidden in a corner. She could make out potions ingredients on the display window and even though the building was dirty and uninviting she was grateful to have found it. Extinguishing her wand light she neared the door and as she pushed it open the hinges creaked and a musty odour hit her nostrils. The inside of the shop was dimly lit and dust and cobwebs were everywhere. The counter at the front looked messy and a stained curtain hang behind it. Suddenly parting the material a middle aged man dressed in black robes came through. He smiled at her widely and Hermione held back a gasp as most of his teeth were revealed to be black or missing.

"What's a beautiful young thing like you doing out so late?" he said looking her up and down with an expression that said he was undressing her with his eyes.

"Do you have any Solanum nicrum?" Hermione said icily before fixing him with a hateful stare.

"Solanum nicrum" the man repeated raising an eyebrow. "My my, aren't we dark" he said lowering his voice. "And here I thought you were a sweet little girl"

"Do you have it or not" she said sternly.

"Ah, so impatient" he said leaning towards her. "Yes, I have it sugar"

"How much?"

"16 sickles and 28 knuts" Thank God it was within her budget, but she could forget the idea of buying a jumper soon as the money left over wouldn't be enough and Dippet's next instalment wasn't due until the end of December. "But you could have it for free if you did me some favours" the man added with a suggestive grin.

"I'll pay" Hermione said sharply and the shopkeeper disappeared into the back with a chuckle. Merlin, that man was disgusting and creepy. If he tried anything she would show him just how dark she could get, compared to a death eater he was nothing.

After a while she began to look around the shop out of boredom. The contents on display were disorganised and most of them were missing price tags. Her eyes suddenly caught a book completely covered in dust and feeling curious she lifted it off the table. Hermione coughed as some of the powdered dirt flew off and patches of black leather covering became noticeable. Eager to see the title she rubbed at the thick dust with her fingers and the word Horcrux suddenly became visible. She dropped the book with a gasp and purposely blinked in disbelief but the faded silver lettering still remained the same. Ever since Herpo the foul had created the first Horcrux the knowledge to make one had always been cloaked in secrecy, it was the blackest of black magic anyone could perform on their soul and the majority of witches and wizards didn't even know of its existence. Information about it was supposed to be very rare and this book was just lying here in a common shop. This must be her lucky night, her thirst for knowledge made her feel giddy with excitement and she picked up the book with shaky hands.

In her time she'd once read about making a Horcrux in a book called secrets of the darkest arts. Harry and Ron had known since it'd been taken from Dumbledore's office but no matter the subject they'd both passed up the offer to read it. Harry was too busy learning how to fight death eaters and Ron couldn't make sense of anything after the first paragraph. She wouldn't deny that the things she'd read had made her feel sick but at the same time she'd felt superior for having gained the secret knowledge, and knowing Harry and Ron would take it the wrong way she'd left that part out when she'd told them how awful the book was.

As a war had been going on she'd only read the detailed instructions once in the hope of finding something to help destroy Voldemort. Since it hadn't been properly cemented in her mind she'd forgotten the vital incantation with time and some of the instructions had become jumbled or vague. This book would tell her though, just a quick look and she was sure she'd remember everything. Hermione was about to lift the cover when a wave of fear made her freeze, wasn't that knowledge best forgotten? Did she really want to remember how to do one of the most evil magic's in the world? What if this time it corrupted her mind? No, she wasn't evil. But she'd killed someone before and if she was already capable of a necessary prerequisite it could be a matter of time before she got tempted.

Hermione took in a deep breath and tapped her fingers on the book. The wise thing would be to put it down and walk away but her hunger for knowledge seemed to be telling her otherwise. Something suddenly caught her attention, the word Horcrux wasn't in the centre and that meant it wasn't the entire title. Glad to have found a reason to stall she drew her wand and pointed it at the book. "Tergeo" she said flicking her stick. The dust instantly cleared away and the full title became visible. It read, the damages and negative effects of making a Horcrux. Hermione felt relieved and disappointed at the same time. It was obvious from the title it wouldn't tell you how to make one. No wonder the book had collected so much dust, most people didn't know what a Horcrux was and those that did probably thought it was a useless read but she didn't think so.

Secrets of the darkest arts hadn't gone into detail about the ill effects, all it'd said was that the rest of your soul became unstable when you ripped it apart to make a Horcrux. She'd been left unsatisfied with the statement as she'd wondered what the consequences would be if someone were to make more than one, and also it'd bothered her that the word unstable hadn't been elaborated upon. Now here she was holding a book full of details on the damages and negative effects. Indeed it was her lucky night, even though it wasn't information on making a Horcrux it was still information about Horcuxes.

A wolf whistle suddenly disturbed the silence and she turned to find the shop keeper with a cloth bundle in his hands.

"Solanum nicrum" the man said setting it down. "Come and have a look love" Feeling uncomfortable by his pointed stare Hermione neared the counter and unwrapped the bundle.

The plant inside looked just as it had in the book, it was definitely Solanum nicrum.

"I'll take it" she said repackaging the plant.

"Do you want that as well sugar?" he said pointing at the book held in her left hand. "Wouldn't cost you a knut if you-"

"How much?" Hermione interrupted loudly.

"Give me a show" the man said deepening his voice.

"Excuse me" she snapped.

"I meant show me the cover" he said feigning innocence and she slammed the book down on the counter. He gave her a smile that said he wasn't fazed in the slightest before running his fingers over the hardback. "My minds gone foggy on the price" the man suddenly said. "How about 8 sickles honey bunch?" he said winking at her and she gave him a dirty look.

"Fine" Hermione said through her teeth and pulled out her purse. Now it was going to be emptied entirely but either way she couldn't have afforded a jumper. It just meant no more snacking on chocolate chip cookies until January, the book was worth the small sacrifice though. As she placed the money on the counter the man put his hand over hers and she jumped back before poking her wand into his throat.

"Sorry, didn't mean to" the shopkeeper said raising his hands in surrender and she threw him to the floor with a spell.

"Oops didn't mean to" she said grabbing the purchased items and as she threw the door wide open two dark spell flew at her. She easily deflected them and the man froze with a frightened expression. Smirking she ran outside and once she got to the three broomsticks she slowed down before laughing out loud. That look on his face had been priceless, he'd thought she was some dumb girl trying to be a dark witch but now he must think she was an undercover follower of Grindelwald or something. Perhaps she should have taught him a lesson for his lewd behaviour, hopefully someone would report him to the ministry if he didn't mend his ways.

Hermione stuffed the book and the Solanum nicrum into her bag before walking towards Honeyduckes. Once she arrived she sneaked back inside and replaced the blocking ward on the front door. She lit her wand in the cellar before opening the trap door and as she went down it was thankful to find it much easier than climbing up. After arriving at the entrance of the one eyed witch she disillusioned herself. She half wished she could use the Homenum revelio charm to detect any human presence outside the statue but it wasn't an option. The charm annoyingly had a huge downside to it, you'd know if there were any humans nearby but the said humans would also know someone had cast it on them. So it would be as good as her shouting out, I'm hiding on the third floor, come find me if you can. That just wouldn't do, absolute secrecy was necessary and with that thought she pressed her ear against the hollowed hump.

When Hermione was sure she couldn't hear anyone she touched her wand against the exit and she was about to open it when a thought occurred to her. What if someone saw her? The disillusionment should be enough to hide her but it wasn't foolproof. If it was a student she could handle it, she was head girl and she could say she was patrolling even though she wasn't meant to tonight. Besides, they would get in trouble for being out of bed in the first place so they wouldn't dare question her let alone confront her. Unless she bumped into the other heads Longbottom and Bones, but then again she could lie and say she got the patrolling schedules mixed up. God forbid the dark lord from coming across her. Merlin's beard, he was meant to be on patrol tonight and Longbottom also. Suddenly the numbers he and Tom had talked about made sense. Hogwarts had seven floors and the dark lord was patrolling floors one, two and four while Longbottom did five, six and seven. During some point in time of their watch they'd take turns to do the third floor. How could she not have realised that? Okay, no need to panic. The heads were only meant to roam the corridors until 11pm and her wristwatch indicated it was a few minutes past eleven, so unless Tom decided to hang around for longer everything would be fine.

That wasn't reassuring at all. If the dark lord found her it wouldn't be easy to fool him with lies and the consequences would be disastrous if he discovered her recently purchased items. She had to hide them in a way that would make them almost impossible to find, then Tom would have nothing to get suspicious over and neither would a professor or the caretaker if they caught her. Hermione opened her bag and tried to retrieve the items but the disillusionment made it difficult to recognise what was what. After taking the charm of herself she took out the book and the cloth bundle and staring at them she tried to think of a best way to conceal them. They could be easily hidden in her pocket if she shrank them. No, the shrinking spell didn't have a set time limit. How long it lasted depended on how strong the magic was and it usually varied from time to time. The items could spring out of her pocket before she got to her room, even if they remained shrunken there was a chance of them being found in their mini forms and she couldn't take that risk.

So what could she do to keep them concealed if they were to enlarge and where would it be the safest to put them? The items outgrowing their hiding place was the problem but if that place were to have enough room-the undetectable extension charm, it was perfect.

Back in her time she'd used it on a beaded bag to fit in loads of big things so the book and the Solanum nicrum should be no problem. Hermione rummaged in her bag before pulling out her fist sized purse and then she made it larger on the inside with a complex wand movement. She shrank the items and easily dropped them into her usual money carrier. The external appearance of the purse looked exactly as it had before and right now she couldn't help but stare in admiration, oh the wonders magic could do. Did purebloods have such moments or was it the cause of her having lived as a muggle for 11 years? Regardless of the way it looked the purse was very heavy.

Using magic she made it feather light and she was about to toss it back in her bag when an impulsive decision stopped her. Hermione unclasped her cloak and undid the top two buttons of her dress. She couldn't believe she was about to hide it there but it was better to be safe than sorry. She shoved the purse inside the left side of her bra before moving it closer to her underarm, and then she fixed up her clothes and looked down at herself. Nothing appeared uneven, no one would be able to tell by just looking at her. It was highly unlikely anyone would dare to search there and the dark lord was no threat since he couldn't bear to touch anybody but himself. She disillusioned herself again. Then she re-checked for sound on the other side of the partition and finding the result the same as before she extinguished her wand light. "Dissendium" Hermione muttered as she touched the secret doorway with her stick and it slid open.

The burning torches on the walls of Hogwarts cast a dim light on the corridor and it was enough for her to see. She cautiously poked her head out and after finding nothing suspicious she stepped outside before closing the hump. She began to walk down the passageway and she was almost at the end when another set of footsteps sounded. Merlin, they were coming towards her. Hermione hastily turned the other way and she was about to take a step forward when a beam of bright light hit her. She jumped in fright and reflexively drew her wand before realising it was just normal light.

"Who's there?" Albus Dumbledore's voice suddenly questioned and her heart painfully lurched. She bravely glanced behind to see it was indeed the transfiguration professor with a brightly lit wand. Knowing the camouflage wouldn't deceive him for long she began to speedily tiptoe forward. It wouldn't be good if Dumbledore caught her. She'd have to be untruthful and since he could tell whenever she lied he'd be more suspicious of her than ever before. Hermione suddenly felt an invisible force swoop over her and her eyes widened. Oh my God, he'd cast a non-verbal Homenum revelio. Throwing all caution to the wind she ran as fast as her legs could carry her, she almost reached the end of the corridor when a spell crashed into her back and varying sensations of warmth began to spread all over her skin.

Fuck, the disillusionment was dissolving and she probably had a quarter of a minute before it was all gone. If only she could reinforce it, the new charm would take 15 to 20 seconds to set in and she didn't have time to spare, getting out of his sight was first priority. Hermione rushed into a clearing and she saw two corridors ahead. Praying Dumbledore would take the one on the right she ran into the one on the left and a figure suddenly blocked her pathway. Recognising its familiar face she froze in horror, it was Tom Riddle. Out of the blue she became completely visible and he jumped back with a snake like hiss. For a second the young dark lord looked frightened, then he moved with unnatural speed and she found him pressing his wand into her chin with a threatening expression.

"Come out, there's no point hiding" Dumbledore's loud voice suddenly stated from faraway and Tom withdrew his stick with a fresh emotionless face. Appearing troubled she looked back and forth. She was trapped between the dark lord and an advancing Dumbledore, she was doomed.

If she were to disillusion herself now would the dark lord tell on her? Before she could think of anything else Tom tapped his wand on her head and she jumped startled. A cool feeling rapidly spread all over her skin and expecting to find herself in the process of becoming camouflaged she looked down. Her eyes widened in disbelief when she couldn't see herself at all. Merlin's beard, his disillusionment spell was as good as invisibility and how the hell did he make it work so fast? The heir of Slytherin swiftly disappeared from sight and out of breath from all the running she clumsily spun around to find his back facing her.

"Stay behind me, don't make a sound" he whispered angrily and she forced herself to slowly breathe through her nose. When loud footsteps started to echo through the corridor she cautiously stuck her head out near the heir of Slytherin's right arm and saw a humanoid shape coming towards them. Her pulse picked up a little speed before she reminded herself that thanks to the dark lord she was super disillusioned. Hermione suddenly wondered why Tom wasn't giving her away, he wouldn't do it if it wasn't in his interest so how did this benefit him? Of course, his strong hatred for Dumbledore. Anything that made life difficult for the transfiguration professor would please him. A sudden flood of strong light chased away the shadows and Dumbledore's recognisable features appeared.

"Mr Riddle" he said coming to a halt with a suspicious expression.

"Professor" Tom said in polite acknowledgement. Dumbledore moved his lit wand side to side and ran his eyes around the space behind the head boy with a searching look. Feeling worried she deeply inhaled and as the dark lord's distinct scent hit her nostrils she realised he'd never stood this close to her with his own free will. "Have you lost something, sir?" he asked with a mild enquiring tone and he lazily looked back and forth, giving the impression that he had nothing to hide.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I have" the professor said in a sudden cheerful voice. "Not something but someone" His reply lit a spark in her mind, so that's why Tom was willingly standing so close. Distance between individuals affected the Homenum revelio's ability to distinguish between the number of humans present. The dark lord's proximity was masking her presence and therefore Dumbledore couldn't detect another human.

"Someone" Tom said questioningly.

"I believe it was a student under the disillusionment charm" he said taking a step closer and Hermione shrank nearer to the head boy. She didn't want to admit it but the increase in strength of his smell was having a somewhat calming effect on her. Was this one sheet of paper away distance hurting him? Why should she care? Good if it was. "I was sure they were in this corridor when the other one turned out to be empty" Dumbledore said looking behind the head boy again. "Curious, how the individual managed to vanish without using any of the exits" the professor continued lowering his voice and he suddenly pointed his illuminated wand right in Tom's face. Hermione held her breath in fear of getting caught but the heir of Slytherin didn't react, he seemed to be staring into the brightness without discomfort.

"You and I both know, professor, this castle is filled with secrets" Tom said tilting his head a little to the left. "Perhaps they used a secret exit that you have no knowledge off" his tone was slightly taunting, but the professor didn't show he was affected by the dark lord's attempt to make him feel bad for possibly not knowing something about Hogwarts that a mere student might.

"Not impossible but I highly doubt it" Dumbledore said smiling before lowering his wand. "Did you catch a glimpse of the person" he questioned with his expression becoming serious.

"Unfortunately I didn't" Tom said moving his head back to the centre.

"Surely you heard footsteps" Dumbledore said and Tom remained quiet, it was obvious to Hermione he was taking his time to make it appear as if he was thinking.

"No sir" he finally said.

"Are you sure, Tom?" the professor asked with a stern expression.

"Yes sir" he replied confidently. Never before had she thought she'd be grateful for Tom being an excellent liar and a superb actor, any other student would have tripped up under Dumbledore's piercing gaze.

"Is that really the truth?" the professor said heavily emphasising the words.

"No" Tom said with a sudden defiant tone and Dumbledore looked taken aback. Hermione's heart skipped a beat and she couldn't believe her ears. "If I am to be strictly honest, I did hear footsteps" He was going to betray her. Son of a bitch, she should have known he was going to do something like this. "Yours sir" he said with a hint of laughter in his voice and feeling relieved she inhaled deeply. For a second the usual twinkle in Dumbledore's eyes became a blazing supernova of anger and she couldn't help her lips from stretching into a slight smile, looks like the dark lord had a sense of humour when it came to pissing of people.

"Very funny" the professor said dryly. "The error is mine, I should have been more specific"

"Forgive me, sir" Tom said but his tone made it clear he wasn't sorry at all. "I know what you meant, but as you insisted for the absolute truth I felt obliged to answer truthfully" he said mockingly.

"I see" Dumbledore said suddenly sounding cheerful. "As you are such an honest person, Mr Riddle" the professor continued with a sarcastic tone of voice. "I would like to know the real answer to why you are still out here after eleven,-" he said with his voice becoming serious. "-especially when you are well aware of the rules"

"After eleven" Tom said slowly. He brought up his hand to look at his wristwatch and out of curiosity she tried to see what it looked like but it was too shadowy. "I didn't realise" he said still staring at it. "I'm so sorry professor, I lost track of time" he said looking up as he put his hand back down.

"Lost track of time" Dumbledore repeated with an expression of disbelief. "You are the most punctual and the least forgetful student I have ever met in my entire career, I find that hard to believe"

"Mental stress can make you forgetful" The dark lord said defensively. "Merlin himself had difficulties"

"Merlin was a thousand years old when he experienced random moments of forgetfulness in his short term memory. Unless you have also forgotten Tom, you are seventeen" the professor said with laughter in his voice.

"I still remember that,-" Tom started sharply. "-sir" he added with a softer voice.

"Well, what you are saying may be true but rules are rules" Dumbledore said boring his eyes into him. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to give you detention for being out after hours" he continued in a light tone of merriment. Silence filled the air and although Dumbledore's face didn't have a trace of it his eyes sparkled as if he were smiling. The dark lord suddenly bent his neck to look at the floor and she noticed his fingers curl. He must be at a stage of balling his hands into fists, something that she knew was indicative of him boiling with anger.

"If I may make a suggestion, sir" Tom said in a low careful voice.

"You may" the professor said cheerfully.

"If you ask my head of house-"

"I don't think that would be wise" Dumbledore interrupted. "Detention with Horace would not be detention, in my opinion he is incapable of punishing students that he favours"

"I see" Tom forced out and he slowly looked up. "When and where should I come for the detention?" he said in a high pitched voice and he started to repeatedly coil and uncoil both of his hands.

"I'll owl it to you tomorrow" the professor said raising an eyebrow as he noticed the dark lord's hand movements. "Is everything alright, Tom?" he asked with a sudden concerned voice and a worried expression pasted on his face.

"Everything's fine, sir" the head boy said mechanically and his fingers froze uncurled.

Dumbledore bore his eyes into Tom and after half a minute passed in silence it was obvious the professor was performing legilimency. The dark lord hadn't broken eye contact yet and she was sure he could shield his mind well enough to conceal whether we was telling the truth or not. Otherwise Dumbledore wouldn't be wasting so much effort on him, and Tom wouldn't have allowed an attempt to break his barriers for so long if they weren't incredibly strong. She couldn't help but feel jealous that he was a better occulumens than she was. Well, at least he wasn't so good at legilimency yet and she relished in the fact.

Tom suddenly looked down and brought up a hand to scratch the back of his head. A casual observer would think he'd bent his neck for that reason alone but she knew he'd done it to protect his mind. Dumbledore's assaults had obviously become too much for his shield but the length of time the dark lord had held up against him was still impressive.

"Very well, Mr Riddle" the professor said breaking the silence with a resigned voice and appearing to have recovered his stamina the head boy looked up. Dumbledore suddenly lowered his gaze to the dark lord's chest and Tom immediately crossed his arms. His fingers began to slowly scratch at his elbows before he slightly leaned backwards and if he was to move back another inch his robe would touch her nose.

Why in the name of bloody Merlin was he reacting like that? Wasn't the problem from his condition limited to being touched and not looked at? He must be afraid of Dumbledore uncovering his secret illness but it's not like anyone could tell there was something wrong with him by just looking at him. Actually, she wouldn't put it past Dumbledore. But still, couldn't Tom make an effort to act his way through this moment? She needed him to play at the quidditch match to kill him and if his condition got discovered he'd most likely be sent off to St Mungo's. "The temperature has dropped significantly low" the professor said looking back at his face. "You should wear a jumper, Tom. Why aren't you wearing one?"

"I've gotten used to the temperature, I'm not cold" he said standing straight again but he didn't uncross his arms.

"Not cold" Dumbledore said pointing his wand and Tom scrunched his shoulders upwards like a reflex reaction to it. The professor made a sudden movement with his stick and the light radiating from it turned deep blue. "According to this, you are very cold" he said lifting the wand up to Tom's face and the dark lord instantly turned his head away. "I will ask you again, Mr Riddle" Dumbledore said lowering his magical rod and the wand light switched back to its original colour. "Why aren't you wearing your jumper?"

"With all due respect, sir," Tom started with a controlled voice and his head swung back towards Dumbledore. "I don't think that's any of your business" he finished raising his voice.

"You are absolutely correct" the professor said with a slight nod of his head. "However, the headmaster has a right to know when a student's health may be affected" he continued with a smile tugging at his lips and the heir of Slytherin slowly uncrossed his arms. "Perhaps an enquiry by, Armando Dippet, will help shed light on what has become of your jumper" the professor finished in a friendly tone but the threat was clear in his words. Tom could either tell him now without hassle or he'd have to deal with the headmaster and Dumbledore would learn of the answer anyway.

"If you must really know, sir,-" Tom said in a forced voice and he paused for a few seconds. "-mine shrank" he spat out and he coiled his hands into fists.

"Shrank" Dumbledore said with an enquiring expression and the dark lord looked down with his arms slightly shaking.

"I grew out of it" Tom said in a voice that was almost a hiss.

"Surely,-" the professor said raising an eyebrow. "-a student of your intelligence knows that can be easily remedied with an enlarging charm"

"I know" he whispered harshly. "But surely you must know professor, that something can be enlarged so many times before the spell ceases to be effective." he said with his voice becoming louder by each word. "I've been enlarging my jumper since first year and this year it stopped working" the head boy said lowering his voice again and his last word was barely audible.

"Ah, yes. Skillwen's 3rd law of enchanted space, I myself have encountered it many times" Dumbledore said cheerfully. "If you don't mind I could ask-"

"I don't need charity" Tom said in a loud voice that barely contained his anger and his head sprang up. Lord Voldemort or not at this moment Hermione couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He hadn't been bothered by Dumbledore's stare due to his condition, it was because he wasn't wearing a jumper and with tonight's temperature he knew the professor would want to know why. "What I meant, sir,-" the dark lord began with a forced apologetic tone. "-is that I prefer the cold and I don't have the need for a jumper, but thank you for offering a solution" he finished icily.

"I see" Dumbledore said with a disappointed expression. "Just remember Tom, - that help is always given at Hogwarts to those who need it" The heir of Slytherin threw his hands behind his back and interlocked them by grasping his wrists. She'd never seen him do that before, Dumbledore had obviously made him very angry by hinting he needed help and therefore indirectly charity. "It is never too late to receive help" the professor continued, his tone was almost pleading and Hermione knew he was referring to the dark lord's evil nature.

Tom started to twist his wrists back and forth within the grips of his hands and with each passing second she grew worried. Oh God, what if he lost his patience? He was already on the edge from everything that'd happened today and there was only so much someone could take. Fingers crossed he won't get expelled so he can make it to all important the quidditch match.

"I will keep that in mind, sir" Tom said in a slightly wavering voice. "But surely, I cannot be the only one that needs to be-" he paused and unclasped and clasped his wrists again. "-as you say, helped" the dark lord continued heavily emphasising the word helped. "So why do you always specifically target me?" he snapped accusingly. "Why me, why?" his voice became oddly high pitched at the end and Dumbledore's expression became scrutinising. "Why is it always me? Why do people like you always-" Tom trailed of nearly sounding hysterical. He tightened the grip on his wrists and looked down at the ground, then he took in a deep audible breath through his mouth before releasing it.

"My offer is not limited to you, Tom" Dumbledore said still staring at him intently. "I help all those who seek it from me" Silence followed as the heir of Slytherin continued to stare at the floor without saying anything. "You appear to be very troubled" the professor suddenly said with a careful tone. "Earlier you mentioned mental stress, I know you don't like to burden others but if you -"

"I don't need your help" the dark lord interrupted speaking through his teeth and he slightly trembled. "Thank you once again for offering" he said with a controlled voice and he slowly looked up again. "The stress, it's really nothing, sir" Tom said shaking his head. "Just had an exhausting day, that's all"

"Whether that is true or not only you know for certain" Dumbledore said with a disbelieving expression. "For your sake I hope you are telling the truth" he said looking sombre for a moment. "I will be keeping a close eye on you, Mr Riddle" he suddenly said in a cold voice.

"As you have always kept" the dark lord said with an equally cold voice and a tone of disgust crept in at the end.

"I'm just watching out for your well being" the professor said raising his voice. "And everyone else's" he added with a threatening look and it became quiet as the dark lord didn't respond. "Goodnight, Tom" Dumbledore suddenly said with a dismissive tone and he turned to leave.

"Goodnight professor" Tom forced out and as he watched Dumbledore walking away he lowered his hands to his sides before balling them into fists.

Soon Hermione was alone with the dark lord and she didn't dare move knowing how angry he was. For a while Tom stood still, then he started to walk forward and she followed close behind. He moved with speed reflecting his foul mood and she had to almost run to keep up with him. As the dark lord turned into a corridor the lit torches at the entrance brightly illuminated his back and she noticed a small feather resting on his robe. She had a strong feeling it belonged to an owl. There was the real answer to why he was late for the eleven o'clock deadline, he must've been at the owlery torturing or killing those poor birds.

The head boy began to rush down a long staircase and she wasn't far behind. He abruptly stopped moving and she gripped the railing to stop herself from crashing into him. Hermione's heart skipped a beat as she saw the reason for his frozen state, near the foot of the stairs Dumbledore was waiting on the landing. The professor had a calculating expression on his face. He swept his eyes side to side over Tom's shoulders like he was expecting to see someone behind him and she fearfully tilted closer to the dark lord.

"Is there something you want, professor?" Tom said with forced politeness and he crossed his arms. "If you have lost your way I could show you to your quarters" he added with an angry tone leaking into his voice.

"That's very kind of you, Mr Riddle, but I haven't lost my mind from old age yet" Dumbledore said chuckling. "I was wandering around in the hope of coming across the hiding student" he continued cheerfully. "Since my efforts have proved fruitless they must have gone back to their dormitory" the professor scanned the surroundings with a suspicious expression and his eyes came to rest on Tom again. He looked over the dark lord's shoulders once more and then he turned away creasing his brows. "Good night once again, Mr Riddle" he called out as he walked off.

"Good night, sir" Tom said venomously.

When Dumbledore's footsteps couldn't be heard the dark lord uncrossed his arms and she straightened to her full height. Tom suddenly resumed speeding down the stairs and raising her cloak above her ankles she hurried after him. When they arrived at the heads quarters she inhaled deeply feeling relieved, the inhabitants of the painting safeguarding the entrance appeared to be asleep. The heir of Slytherin aimed his wand at it before making a slashing motion and as the canvas tore in the middle Persephone and Hades jumped awake screaming. Hermione swallowed, he'd never physically damaged the painting before and now that he had it spoke volumes of just how angry he was.

"This time you've gone too-" Persephone started in a shouting voice and another spell from Tom had her screaming again.

"Leave us alone" Hades yelled pulling his wife out of harm's way. "Say the password and be on your way or I swear in the name of Zeus I'll have you expelled" he continued bravely and a second later the dark lord had him screaming at the top of his longs.

"Stop it" the Goddess shouted tearfully and he turned his wand on her. "Password, password, password" she repeated thrice with a tone of desperation as she moved Hades and herself into a corner.

"Medusa" Tom hissed and Persephone and her husband ran out the painting the second the entrance unlocked. The dark lord effortlessly repaired the canvas with magic and then he threw the door wide open before walking inside. Hermione remained rooted at the spot with a fearful expression and she suddenly felt like a rabbit that had been rescued from the lion by a leopard.

She didn't want to go in but what choice did she have? Dumbledore was still out there and she couldn't get to her room without facing Tom. On second thought, sleeping in the room of requirements would be safer. To hell with getting caught, any professor could give her their piece of mind and punishment as long as it kept her away from the dark lord's wrath. With her mind made up she turned and took a step forward. "Do you need an invitation?" Tom's shouting voice suddenly sounded from inside and she froze.

Merlin's beard, that was definitely an order to go in. If she could get to the room of requirements in time she'd be protected. No, that was a bad plan. He'd find her tomorrow and disobeying him was never a good idea because it always ended in severe punishment. Besides, she'd ruin the submissive act and it was important that he continued to believe she was under his control. After hyperventilating in her sleeve she turned back around and walked up to the entryway before bravely stepping over the threshold.

Not so faraway the dark lord was waiting with his wand drawn and as she closed the door he threw a spell in her direction. Warmth enveloped her upon its contact and a second later his disillusionment charm completely lifted off her. "Decipio sonitus" he said twirling his wand high in the air as he walked towards her and she momentarily stopped breathing. Her Latin was a little rusty but she was pretty sure sonitus meant sound. Oh God, he'd sound proofed the room with one of his invented spells. Coming to a stop he pointed his wand at her and she gripped her magical stick under the cover of her cloak but it didn't make her feel any better. "Explain" Tom said boring his eyes into her and her heart raced as she tried to think up an answer. "I don't like repeating myself" he said raising his voice.

"I-err-" she said attempting to stall and his expression turned murderous. "-I-" She was desperately trying but she was so under pressure she couldn't think straight.

"Cruci-" Tom started.

"I couldn't sleep, I felt like taking a walk" she blurted out in fright and she immediately regretted saying the first thing that'd come to her head.

"Do I look stupid to you?" he roared making a chair rise into the air and as it crashed to the floor a loud crack sounded. Hermione discretely drew her wand with a worried expression and took a step back. Oh God, she was back to square one with the dark lord. She couldn't just make up a whole new answer because that'd give away she'd lied in the beginning and make him suspicious. "I want the truth, Granger" he hissed and all the candles in the room suddenly fluttered. As her mind drew a blank she tightened the grip on her stick with a frightened look and she almost had a heart attack when his eyes moved down to the right side of her cloak. To her horror she realised she'd drawn her wand pointing up and it'd made a telltale mini tent in the covering. A second later a jet of scarlet light shot towards her and she whipped out her stick.

"Protego" Hermione shouted blocking it and the non-verbal expeliarmus rebounded towards Tom. He jumped out the way and it crashed into a wall. The dark lord fixed her with a look that was worthy of making someone drop dead and balled his left hand into a fist. Merlin, she shouldn't have done that. Actually, it was a good thing she'd blocked him. He knew she wasn't that bad from their previous wand battle and it would be highly suspicious if she suddenly became worst than a first year. Without warning Tom started to fire non-verbal curses and she blocked one after the other. Their wands appeared like moving rods of light as varying colours of magic poured out of them, the misaimed spells flew off in random directions and most of them crashed into furniture. So far she was doing good to show she was putting up a fight, a few more spells then she'd give up on purpose to hide the true extent of her duelling skills.

A minute into the fight and her heavy cloak started to annoy her. She undid the clasp with her left hand as she continued to work magic with her right hand and the material flew away from the impact of a spell. Feeling much better without the burden she tackled a nasty hex and as she destroyed another one a cutting curse rushed towards her shoulder. She scarcely managed to pull away but it wasn't enough to stop the spell from slicing the strap of her bag. Her fake leather possession dropped to the floor and she kicked it away to avoid tripping on it.

"Levicorpus" Tom shouted and unlike their last wand battle she easily blocked it. She wasn't going to let herself get picked up and thrown into a wall again. She'd been expecting him to try that, it was common for a person to use similar moves in duels and it looked like lord Voldemort was no exception.

He began to employ complex spells and she had to put in an effort to fight back. Blocking her attacks he moved closer and closer towards her and realising what he was trying to do she increased the distance. It would be impossible for her to succeed if he used physical force and he knew that very well. He'd thought he could grab hold of her while she was distracted, this was another one of his old moves. She had fallen over last time while she'd tried to get out of his reach but this time she was going to be well out of his way.

"Casso contego" Hermione roared as she made a stabbing motion at his shield charm and he quickly reinforced it. "Impedimenta" she added hastily before moving further back and Tom started to shoot spells with renewed vigour. Last time they'd fought he'd used simple spells but these were awfully dark. She hated to admit it but he was brilliant at duelling and she was surprised to find she could hold up against him, even though it was barely. It was like battling a highly experienced auror or a death eater, only Tom's actions and choice of spells were far more carefully planned and she had to make lots of last second defence moves.

His intelligence definitely surpassed her. But when it came to fighting with a wand he still had a long way to go before he became the lord Voldemort that'd duelled Dumbledore at the ministry of magic during her fifth year. Now the young dark lord was only 17, from what she'd witnessed in the great hall after Xavian had called him queer she was sure he didn't have the courage or the capability to take on Albus Dumbledore. It suddenly dawned on her that for the first time she having a proper duel with Tom Riddle and remaining undefeated, perhaps she had thought too highly of him. Come to think of it, he kept getting the better of her in defence against the dark arts classes because she held back her full potential and an unconscious part of her feared him as the dark lord. Now it was clear to her that he wasn't yet the great but terrible Voldemort of her time, but she wasn't going to make the mistake she had on the astronomy tower and underestimate the enemy. There was no doubt he was powerful, one fatal slip up could mean her downfall and she didn't want to lose. She had a feeling if she gave it her 100% best she might be able to injure him or even defeat him, that is if bad luck didn't descend on her like last time and make her trip on something.

Defeat him? Merlin, what the hell was she doing continuing to fight him like this? He had to be the one that emerged victorious not her, she creased her brows in self anger as an internal battle set in. Hermione didn't want to lose on purpose when she was doing so well, she wanted to beat the dark lord but soon her adrenaline fuelled mind came to its senses. The mission to kill him was more important than anything and nothing could get in its way. She couldn't let the dark lord see her as a threat and become suspicious of her background. He had to continue believing she was harmless and under his control, so she could strike him dead without him ever suspecting. If she continued to reveal any more of her magical fighting skills she might as well tattoo on her forehead, powerful witch from 1998 come to defeat future dark lord, Tom Riddle.

It wasn't an option anymore, she was going to lose right now but she had to make it look genuine. Out of the corner of her eyes she noticed the chair Tom had broken. It wasn't that faraway, she could slip on it and since she'd fallen for real last time he'd totally buy it. She drew closer to the furniture little by little and he followed shooting curses. "Expelliarmus" Hermione suddenly shouted. Two of his spells crashed into it and knocked the expelliarmus back at her. Raising her wand in a fake attempt to block it she stepped on one of the chair's legs and deliberately lost her balance. The stick flew from her hand as the red light hit her, and having been deflected by two spells the expelliarmus had enough force to send her sailing backwards through the air before shattering a window behind. She cried out as her body met the ground and covered her face from the rain of broken glass.

Suddenly there was nothing but silence, except she could almost hear the internal sound of her racing heart. Hermione lay rigid and didn't dare lower her hands. It didn't feel like she'd done the right thing anymore, she'd most likely dug her own grave. The sound of his advancing footsteps mixed with a crunching noise echoed through the room as he walked over the remains of the window. She heard him come to a stop near her and beads of sweat formed on her forehead. She still refused to look, she was too scared. A rapid calm feeling took over her mind and she had a desperate urge to uncover her face. But she shouldn't, why shouldn't she? She couldn't remember why and before she could think further she found herself lowering her hands. In seconds her mind cleared and she realised the dark lord had used the imperius curse on her.

Hermione's vision of the ceiling suddenly became interrupted by Tom's face looking down at her and she screamed in fright. She was looking into the face of death, absolute fury and madness was in his eyes. His handsome features marred and distorted by anger and hatred, and his pale white skin was tainted with rivulets of crimson liquid. Her eyes caught a piece of glass sticking out from the right side of his forehead and her heart felt like it was going to stop. Holy mother of Merlin, she'd caused it to happen. The dark lord was in the foulest of moods and she'd just sliced open his forehead.

All of a sudden he pointed his wand at her and her pulse dramatically quickened. She knew what he was going to do and her survival instincts kicked in. Hermione jumped into a sitting position and not caring about the glass shards she tried to crawl away using her bare hands. The heir of Slytherin effortlessly picked her up with magic and threw her into a wall on the other side of the room. She cried out as her head banged into it and then she huddled against the solid like it could offer some protection. In seconds he caught up with her and as he raised his wand with a merciless look absolute terror gripped her. "I'm sorry" she said with a wavering voice. "I'm sorry" she repeated sounding more desperate and her eyes watered. But unlike last time her apologies fell on deafened ears and there was no change in his expression.

"Crucio" Tom shouted and Hermione let out a deafening scream. Her body shook all over and repeatedly knocked back and forth against the wall. Tears poured out of her eyes and as the pain increased in its intensity her vision blackened. Her screams became higher pitched and continuing to violently shake she fell over sideways. Her limbs jerked forward and dragged her away from the wall and as she thrashed about her body spread onto the floor with her back to it. Hermione's spine started to arch up and fall back down repeatedly while her arms and legs carried on shaking and twitching.

Every nerve ending in her body burned and the pain was unbearable. It was ten times worse than any cruciatus she had ever experienced, even Bellatrix's. She wanted to die. She wished he would shout Avada Kedavra, anything to make it go away and as if her prayers were answered it suddenly stopped. With her eyes closed she lay on the floor crying loudly, the curse had lasted less than quarter of a minute but to her it felt like she'd been tortured for hours. Now her limbs were trembling and every few seconds tremors went through her whole body. The horrible after effects of being crucioed brought back all her old memories, the death eaters killing and torturing. The dark mark floating above her house, the image of her mum and dad's dead bodies, Ron's blood stained face, Voldemort's laughter and Harry dropping dead. She sobbed hysterically wanting her parents and friends back and as her heart became heavy with emotion she let out a strangled scream of desperation.

Something hard suddenly touched her chin and she snapped her eyes open to find it was the young dark lord's wand. He raised it into the air and she let out a whimper of fear. "Pl-please, n-not ag-again" she stuttered tearfully as she tried to move away but her nerves were too numb. "I di-didn't me-mean to hurt y-you" she added with effort when there seemed to be no change in his demeanour. Tom lowered his wand and un-bent his upper half to stand straight again.

"Hurt me" he said with a brief puzzled expression. "Elaborate" he commanded pointing his stick at her once more. Was he serious? Couldn't he feel the gash near his temple? Merlin's beard, he hadn't known. That meant being crucioed had nothing to do with it, oh God, she'd just made things worse for herself. What was he going to do to her now? "Have you gone deaf?" Tom shouted kicking at her legs and she let out a cry as their freshly crucioed muscles shuddered in response.

"You're forehead, on the right" Hermione whispered weakly and new drops of tears fell from her eyes. The dark lord raised his left hand and lightly skimmed his palm over the injury before tracing the outline of the lodged glass with his fingertips. Appearing calm he put his hand back down, then he waved his wand at an armchair and it moved behind her with its back to her. The heir of Slytherin suddenly made a grab for her and Hermione screamed as he took hold of her hair. With the assistance of a spell he pulled her into a sitting position and the burning pain in her joints made her tearfully gasp. The head boy released her before standing straight and with no strength to hold herself up she fell backwards onto the behind of the armchair.

Tom twirled his wand and as the see-through jagged pieces lifted themselves off the floor she eyed them in horror. God in heaven, he'd sat her up to stab her with them. He made the levitating sections pile together and she turned her head sideways with a scared expression. Her long hair came down like a curtain, causing her vision to become obscured and waiting for the glass to attack her flesh she felt goose bump all over. A sudden high pitched clinking sound made her heart jump and then it went quiet. Feeling some sort of a panic attack coming on she took in deep breaths and when something touched the top of her ear she moaned in fright before realising it wasn't hurting her. The thing started to move her hair away and with the fear still pasted on her face she moved her head back to find it was the dark lord's wand. Seeming startled by her movement he froze and wondering where the glass was she eyed the stick with creased brows. Then she noticed them in a heap near the door and in the candlelight they almost gleamed like diamonds. So that was the cause of the sharp sound. Thank God, better the floor than her body.

Tom suddenly resumed clearing the tresses from her face and her attention snapped back to him. Soon only one stubborn clump of strands remained and each time he tried to move them they moved back down. After one more attempt he roughly curled them around his wand and the sharp tug made her sniff in pain. With careful movement he secured the brown lock behind her ear and then he pulled his stick away. The dark lord moved back a few inches before sitting down on the floor cross legged and as he watched her with an unreadable expression she stared back with immobile eyelids.

"You think I'm in pain" Tom said breaking the silence and Hermione blinked startled. "This" he said pointing at his forehead. "You think this hurts" he said tilting his upper half slightly towards her. "You think this hurts" the dark lord repeated in a sharper tone and her pulse quickened. Was she supposed to answer that? He raised his thumb and index finger above his forehead whilst keeping his gaze on her, then he pulled out the glass without any signs of discomfort and threw it aside. "You think this hurts" Tom shouted hacking at the wound with his fingernails and her heart lurched violently as her eyes enlarged in horror. Fresh redness began to flow down the right side of his face and almost entirely covered it but he carried on attacking himself without a care. The dark lord suddenly stilled his self hurting hand and lowered it to his eye level. He started to stare at it unblinking and she gazed at him with a mixture of fear and uncertainty. All of a sudden Tom began to laugh and she almost had a heart attack. Continuing to watch his blood stained hand he carried on and Hermione took in deep breaths feeling more frightened than ever. This behaviour was way too disturbing, even for him. Tom Riddle was seriously fucked in the head, there couldn't possibly be a sane explanation to all this.

His laughter came to an abrupt end and the wind howling against the glassless window frame could now be heard clearly. He lowered his hand and got on his knees before moving a little closer to her. Hermione stopped blinking and swallowed feeling scared. The dark lord placed his wand under her chin and she took in a sharp intake of breath. He pulled the stick upwards and as she was forced to look up she yelped from the after crucio sensitivity in her neck.

"To feel hurt-" Tom whispered increasing the pressure on his stick. "-you have to be able to distinguish between being in pain and not being in pain" he finished withdrawing his wand and a sad look that was so alien on him flashed on his face. Hermione creased her forehead and stared at him intently. She didn't know what to make of all this, was he saying he couldn't sense pain? Was this due to his mysterious illness? Is that the reason why he hadn't felt the cut on his forehead? But he'd seemed in pain when his chest had bleed, maybe the condition was body part specific.

She suddenly trembled from a wave of muscular contractions and gasping in pain she almost fell to the floor when Tom held her up with a spell. The crucio aftershock abruptly vanished and as her whole body sagged against the armchair her head rolled to the right. She raised her eyes upwards and noticed her fallen bag far ahead. All the contents had dropped out and there was a glass bottle amongst them that was unfamiliar to her. Why did she have it and what was it?

All of a sudden she felt fingers invade her hair and as he pulled her head back to the centre she moaned in discomfort. "Your answer is long overdue" the dark lord said pulling his hand back before sitting on his legs. Merlin, she didn't know what to say without looking like a liar. "Talk" he ordered poking his wand into her shoulder with force and Hermione screamed. Without warning the tremors in her muscles returned and he immediately removed the stick. Crying in pain she weakly scratched at the ground for support and as her head tilted to the side her eyes fell on the mysterious bottle again. She'd seen it somewhere before but where? It suddenly sparked in her mind why she had it and most importantly what it was. She'd asked for it from the hospital wing when she'd gone there to see if she'd been successful in injuring a Slytherin quidditch player, it'd slipped her mind to take out the bottle from her bag and thank God for that. A brilliant idea was coming to her that would support her first answer completely and give the dark lord no reason to be suspicious.

Out of the blue her body went limp and her head came to rest on her right shoulder. Prepared to reply she tried to talk but her throat hurt so much she had to pause and swallow.

"I-su-suff-" Hermione started stuttering weakly and a gentle touch on her face made her stop. She moved her eyes to the left and saw it was the heir of Slytherin's wand.

"Look at me" Tom ordered applying mild pressure on her cheekbone and she slowly turned her head towards him.

"Speak" he said staring into her eyes and knowing he was going to use legilimency she mentally smiled. He didn't stand a chance against her occulumency, the dark lord had a lot of learning to do before he became the master legilimens he'd been in her time.

"I suffer from reoccurring nightmares" she said with a wavering voice. It wasn't a lie as she had them from time to time and she projected that truth loud and clear from her mind.

"The dreamless sleep potion's losing its effectiveness" she said making her voice sound distressed and she allowed him see an image of the glass bottle. "It was terrible tonight" Hermione continued in a whispering voice. "I thought a walk outside might help" she squeaked out before managing to sprout fresh tears. He quickly pulled the wand away from her face and stared at her unblinking.

"Where's the potion?" Tom suddenly asked and she felt glad he was acting just as she'd predicted. The dreamless sleep potion had to be taken three times a day and once before going to bed for it to be effective in severe cases. That knowledge and her half truths from his so called legilimency had obviously led him to the conclusion that if she suffered badly as she said she did then she'd keep it on her.

"There" she said moving her head to the right and his eyes followed her direction before he got on his feet. He walked towards her bag and picked up the bottle lying near it. Then he uncorked it and smelt the liquid. After replacing the stopper the dark lord looked at her and she waited for him to confirm in some way that he'd believed her answer.

"This could have been easily carried on your persons" he said rotating the bottle. "So why would you-" he said summoning her bag and he dropped the dreamless sleep potion inside. "-take something as large this on a walk to clear your mind?" he finished accusingly as he held it up and she momentarily stopped breathing. Okay, an innocent reason to carry her bag. She could say-. Her limbs trembled interrupting her thought and she gritted her teeth in pain.

With quick steps the head boy was in front of her again and then he sat down on the floor. "Why, Granger?" Tom said lifting her bag up by one half of its torn strap and seeming to wait for her to stop shaking he dangled it back and forth. Her muscles suddenly relaxed and he pointed his wand at her. "Speak" he ordered.

"On the-wa-way back-I-I thought I'd get-so-some books-fr-from the library" she said stuttering weakly as she blinked away tears. "Most of-m-my homework's-d-due soon" Hermione continued while mentally broadcasting the truth of her words. "I wanted to do-so-some if I couldn't-g-get back to sleep" she forced out as she made her mind go blank. "I ca-can't levitate more than one thing" she said letting him sense the truth again even though he already knew that otherwise he might get suspicious. "Thought the bag wo-would help me ca-carry them all" Hermione finished with a tone of false sincerity. Tom stared at her unblinking before slighting narrowing his eyes and wondering what that meant she felt worried. He had to believe her, the story had been flawless and backed by truths from legilimency.

Suddenly raising his wand the dark lord gave it a twirl and she flinched but no harm came to her. All the remaining items that'd fallen from her bag rose into the air and came to hover above them in a circle. Moving it in an anti-clockwise direction he scrutinised each object and she was more thankful than ever that she'd put the Hogsmeade items elsewhere. After dumping everything back in her bag the head boy cast a revealing charm on it but the fake leather carrier remained the same. After another try he put it down and fixed his eyes on her. He had a look that said he knew something was amiss but he couldn't quiet put his finger on it.

All of a sudden Tom held his wand across her throat like a sword and she cried out in fright.

"Why did you go outside when you could've taken a walk inside?" he questioned threateningly and her heart skipped a beat. Merlin, how did he know that? "Answer me" the dark lord shouted forcefully pressing his stick against her windpipe and Hermione shrieked.

"I didn't go out" she said in a wheezing voice while keeping her mind blank with occulumency.

"You were wearing an outdoor cloak?" he hissed increasing the pressure on her throat and she almost started to choke when Tom pulled the wand away. She coughed and took in huge gulps of air. The damn cloak, she should have realised the conclusion he'd draw from it. As she took in another deep breath a convincing answer came to her and most of it was thanks to the dark lord. "What were you doing out at this time of the night?" Tom said demandingly. "Don't lie unless you want to suffer the consequences" he added raising his voice.

"I swear I was inside the whole time" she whispered while occluding her mind.

"I said don't lie" he shouted jabbing his wand into her arm with strength and Hermione screamed.

"I don't have a jumper, that's why I was wearing the cloak" she said shakily as tears wetted her cheeks and he looked right into her eyes. "I can't afford one" she said lowering her voice while looking ashamed and she let him detect the truthfulness of her words before showing him mental images of her empty purse. The dark lord's angry expression slowly disappeared and he removed his wand from her arm. "It was cold-" Hermione continued with a tearfully sniff. "-so I thought-"

"You don't have to explain further" Tom cut in sharply. He looked down at the floor and continued to stare at it. She felt glad he'd fallen for her spoon-fed bait. Strange how the great, Tom Marvolo Riddle, relied on legilimency so blindly that he didn't realise the truth could be bent, twisted and taken out of context in so many ways that it can end up becoming a lie. Even in her time he didn't learn and that'd allowed Severus Snape to spy on him and his death eaters. Well, a genius always has a weakness or two and she was grateful this one had worked to her advantage.

The dark lord suddenly looked up with a crazed expression and she stopped blinking. "Everything you heard in the corridor" he said threateningly as he pointed his wand. "If you ever tell anyone-"

"I won't" she interrupted in a low voice.

"All that has happened in this room tonight, you will not communicate it to anyone in any way" Tom commanded raising his voice.

"No one will know" she said weakly and he lowered his stick with all emotion disappearing from his face.

Without warning Hermione started to shiver and this time it wasn't the aftermath of being crucioed as the characteristic twitching of the limbs were absent. It was because she was feeling very cold and the icy wind coming from the broken window was to blame. However, it couldn't elicit a reaction from the heir of Slytherin who was now staring at her with narrowed eyes. He suddenly tore his gaze away and looked in the direction of the glassless window. Then he got on his feet and walked up to it.

"Recro-" Tom said waving his wand towards the pile of gleaming glass. "-fenestra" he added flicking it at the window before moving his right hand in a zigzag motion. The see-through pieces flew up and attached to the hole in the wall piece by piece. Then a flash of white light joined them together and the window was as good as new.

Although cold air wasn't coming into the room anymore the temperature remained roughly the same and seeming oblivious to the fact the dark lord started fixing broken furniture. As Hermione continued to shiver she attempted to move her hands and a dull throb spread through them. She kept trying even though it greatly pained her and in the end she managed to hug herself. Quietly crying she rested her head on her right shoulder and closed her eyes. After some time passed in complete silence she raised her eyelids and saw everything in the room was repaired and in its usual place, with the obvious exception of her armchair. Tom was standing near the door with his back to her and wondering what he was up to she slowly positioned her head upright. The dark lord suddenly turned around and as she noticed his hands were holding her cloak her heart did a somersault. What could he possibly discover from it now? Surely the interrogation was over?

The heir of Slytherin started to walk towards her and fear pooled in her stomach. When he sat in front of her again she stopped blinking and her involuntary shivering was the only visible body movement. An unsure expression flashed on his face then he leaned towards her and laid the cloak upon her like a blanket. Hermione's eyes widened and she momentarily stopped breathing. Soon she expected something horrible to happen but the material insulating her from the chilly temperature continued to do just that. The dark lord suddenly touched her neck with his wand and she let out a frightened gasp. Then her eyebrows knitted in confusion as she felt waves of heat spread down her spine and flow all the way to her fingertips. This was definitely a warming spell that he'd obviously cast non-verbally and as if to confirm it her shivering vanished. The head boy scrutinised her with an expression that said he was satisfied with some kind of a potion he'd brewed and then he pulled his wand away. "You shouldn't go wandering if you're stupid enough to get caught" he said coldly as he moved an inch back from her. But the unpleasantness spewed from his mouth barely registered in her mind and drugged with the heat coursing through her she couldn't find the energy to think a single thought.

Tom summoned her wand and as he placed it on her lap she snapped out of her trance. What in the name of bloody Merlin, maybe the cruciatus had gotten to her mind and she was hallucinating or something. Hermione blinked on purpose a couple of times but the cloak covering her did not vanish. She looked at him with a suspicious expression and tried to work out what was really going on. "Disgusting, the way you carry heavy things like a common muggle" he said sounding angry as he picked up her bag and then he fixed the broken strap with magic. Her mind was so busy she paid no attention to his words, why would the dark lord care if she was cold or not? It couldn't possibly be compassion, could it? No, Voldemort wasn't capable of something like that. Unless there was a sinister reason behind it and there had to be one but what could it be? "Filthy mindless creatures, all of them" He must have wanted to mess with her mind, get some sick pleasure from her visible confusion. She wasn't going to indulge him further and with that thought she made her face expressionless. "Polluting the magical world with their dirty blood" Perhaps she was reading into it too much. He looked nothing like the Voldemort of her time, even though his facial features were too perfect he appeared pretty much human. "Ruining pure bloodlines" So was it possible for the 17 year old dark lord to have a shred of humanity?

Well, maybe-hell no, was she bloody insane? He'd crucioed her for the sole reason of being angry since he hadn't known about the cut then. Anyone with some kind of empathy or human feelings wouldn't of have done that. "You have some intelligence, Granger, but when you drag those piles of books around you appear like a talentless mudblood" Tom said loudly and the word mudblood jolted her back to reality. She could still hear the word resonating in her eardrums, she'd never heard it from his lips before and now that she had it filled her with rage. "Do you want people to think you're a mudblood?" the dark lord shouted making her flinch. "Is that the reason why you didn't tell, Malfoy, you're a half-blood when he openly called you a mudblood in front of the whole class?"

Glaring at him she turned red with fury. It's not like she enjoyed being called a mudblood, the truth was she was actually a muggleborn and at the time she'd been too angry to remember her fake blood status. "Have you no shame in glorifying your muggle heritage?" Tom said lowering his voice and an expression of utter disgust formed on his face. "Or did you inherit all the stupidity of your muggle father?" he shouted digging his nails into her bag and she had a desperate urge to slap him. Her dad was not stupid, he'd been an intelligent dentist.

"Muggles aren't stupid" Hermione said angrily without thinking and her eyes widened in horror as she realised what she'd said. For a second he stayed still, then snatched her wand with a furious expression and flung it far away. The sound of it meeting the ground echoed through the room and she fearfully gripped the insides of her cloak.

"Repeat that" Tom hissed slamming her bag down on the floor.

"I didn't mean it" She said shakily.

"Repeat what you said" he roared jumping to his feet and pointing his wand.

"I'm sorry, I never meant to-"

"Crucio" Tom shouted and Hermione let out an anguish filled scream. She couldn't see anything, she couldn't hear anything. It was like someone had thrown her into an ocean on a moonless night. Her body moved of its own accord, like it was being controlled by a puppeteer and the only thing she could do was feel. Be aware of each second of indescribable pain touching every inch of her, inside and out. Never before in her life had she felt so much torment, such agony and suffering. Whenever the pain had become unbearable she'd always wished for death but this time she would commit suicide if she could. Anything to free her from this hell, anything to stop feeling. If the infamous ninth circle of hell existed then this had to be it.

Soon her conscious mind slipped out of her control and she couldn't form a single thought. She was nothing now, Hermione Granger wasn't here anymore. In her place was the body of a girl that absorbed all the pain and screamed and moved in perfect mechanical response. All of a sudden everything disappeared, even the wicked force torturing her and then there was light. A hazy image filled her eyes before becoming sharp and her hearing burst to life with the sound of loud crying. Her mind jumped awake from its comatose state and it took her a second to realise she was the one crying. She was Hermione Granger again, she could remember who she was and the suffering she'd been through. But she couldn't recall her cloak coming off or how she'd fallen to the ground on her back. It was obvious how those things must've happened but no matter the pressure she put on her mind the actual memories of them happening wouldn't come to her.

The aftershock suddenly made her entire body shake and she screamed in pain but her throat was so hoarse it didn't sound like one. When her muscles relaxed she took in a deep breath and then she let out a fearful cry as Tom Riddle stepped into view. His blood soaked face seemed to show no emotion and continuing to stare at him her fear changed to feelings of utter hatred. My God, he'd been holding back when he'd crucioed her the first time. She'd thought it being painful than Bellatrix's was the worst thing ever but no, he could actually make it a hundred times worse than that. Never before during a cruciatus had she lost total awareness of her surroundings or had her mind completely frozen. She'd heard of the unforgivable turning people's brain into mush, seen Neville Longbottom's parents suffering from it and now she had an insight to how it probably started. Hermione was sure if Tom really wanted to he could further magnify the cruciatus and turn her into a mindless vegetable.

He was capable of such cruelty at this age that grown death eaters couldn't even compare to his cruciatus, and to think she had ever thought there was a minuscule amount of humanity in him. There was nothing human about him, he was a demonic soul under the disguise of a teenage boy. Doesn't matter what he looked like, Voldemort will always be Voldemort and she should never forget that.

Tom suddenly started to move towards her and she attempted to slide away but her abused nerves wouldn't obey. His black shoes came to a stop near her elbows, then he got on his knees and her heart twisted in fear at his closeness.

"Repeat what you said" the dark lord commanded touching her face with his wand.

"Mu-muggles ar-aren't stu-stupid" Hermione stuttered tearfully while her pulse accelerated and she prayed he wouldn't crucio her again.

"I hate muggles" he shouted pressing his stick into her skin and she let out a frightened moan. "They are nothing but animals in the form of a witch or a wizard" the heir of Slytherin said venomously and his visage showed pure loathing. "Muggles are stupid" he said raising his voice as he grabbed a fistful of her hair with his other hand and she gasped. "Repeat it" he hissed yanking them and she yelped. "Repeat it, Granger" Tom shouted pulling her hair with renewed vigour.

"Muggles are stupid" Hermione said shakily as her eyes filled with fresh tears. He released her hair and withdrew his wand with his face becoming expressionless. The crucio after effect suddenly attacked her and a scream tore from her throat. Clenching her teeth she closed her eyes but it didn't lessen the stinging pain she felt all over. She sobbed and screamed again and again until it went away, and then she opened her eyes to find the dark lord was no longer towering over her.

All of a sudden footsteps sounded and her heart lurched. She wildly moved her eyes around expecting to see his face any second now, and it took her a few breaths to realise the noise was the duplicate of what was heard when someone climbed the stairs. She still couldn't bring herself to feel safe though, shortly afterwards the sound of a door slamming shut echoed through the room and only then did she feel out of danger. Hermione wanted to get up but found her muscles wouldn't do as she willed. With tears raining down her cheeks she kept trying to move and after awhile she managed it with great difficulty. As she shakily got on her hands and knees stinging pain shot through her joints and she let out a loud cry. Whimpering she slowly travelled towards her wand and then she closed her hand around it with gritted teeth.

She took a deep breath before crawling towards the staircase to her room. Then she dragged her body up a step and sat on the next one with a gasp. A few seconds later she repeated her actions and by the time she got to the top her face was drenched with salty water. Using all her strength she opened the door and raised her wand. A wave of pain attacked her arm and trying to keep her focus she bite her lips. Then she summoned her cloak and bag and once they were safely inside her room she crossed the threshold on her hands and knees. She took a moments rest before shutting the door with magic and then feeling extremely weak she crumpled to the floor.

Hermione started to cry loudly, her whole body was aching and the pain was really bad. She imagined Avada Kedavraing Tom repeatedly but it didn't bring her any lasting comfort. She terribly missed her parents and friends. Harry, Ron and her had always fought against Voldemort together and now that she was alone she wasn't strong enough. If only she'd died as well then she wouldn't have to be here suffering. She'd endured so much she didn't want to feel anymore, she wanted it all to end. No, she couldn't think like that. It was cowardice and Hermione Granger was not a coward. Harry and Ron had bravely fought to the end and she would do the same. Fate had given her a chance to set everything right, Ron's necklace had sent her to the past seconds before she'd met her death and then she'd been given Harry's wand. Now she was the girl who lived and she possessed Voldemort's brother wand. It was like the prophecy all over again, only this time she'd been given the duty to kill or to be killed and she determined to emerge victorious.

Hermione bravely blinked away her tears and forced herself into a sitting position. With a feeling of desperation she edged towards her trunk and then she opened the lid with shaky hands. While rummaging inside she breathed heavily as this simple task of searching seemed to her body like she was running a marathon. Soon she brought out a bottle of pain killing potion and after uncorking it with her teeth she noisily drank all the liquid. She dropped the now empty glass structure back into the trunk. Then she lay on the ground flat on her back and stared at the ceiling. As the magic of the potion began to take effect the pain considerably reduced and her lips suddenly stretched into a weak smile.

She wished she was well enough to do a victory dance, she'd luckily made it when so many things could've gone wrong. Tom had believed everything she'd said and it wouldn't have been possible without her use of advanced occulumency. Being new to that kind of mind magic she'd had a hidden fear of slipping up, but she'd refused to acknowledge it then as it always made things worse in the face of danger. Now she was proud of herself and she was sure she could effortlessly do it again. Plus, her acting skills couldn't be as bad as she'd thought. Come to think of it, she did convince Umbridge to go into the forbidden forest and then there was her impersonation of Bellatrix Lestrange so acting must come to her naturally in desperate situations.

Hermione slowly unbuttoned her dress and removed the purse hidden in her bra. She took out the items from inside it and was pleased to find them still shrunken, the safety precautions had proved necessary though. She raised herself on her elbows with a gasp before shakily lifting her wand, and then she enlarged the book and the wrapped Solanum nicrum. Creasing her brows in discomfort she forced her body to properly sit up, the soreness of her muscles became more pronounced and she let out a throaty moan before flicking her wand at the newly acquired cloth pack. It opened up to reveal the Solanum nicrum and she stared at it with lit eyes. Finally, she had all the ingredients for the broom cursing potion and soon the dark lord would meet his demise. With a slight smile she placed a freezing charm on the plant and magically wrapped it up again, and then she levitated it and her new book into the trunk before shutting its lid.

She suddenly yawned and felt like falling asleep on the floor but her full bladder could no longer be ignored. As she moved towards the bathroom on her knees tears came to her eyes from the pain hidden in her nerves and she was grateful she hadn't wet herself under the cruciatus. Immediately images of Lavender Brown flashed before her eyes, the girl was uncontrollably screaming and urinating in fear as Bellatrix crucioed her and Fenir Greyback opened his mouth to take a bite out of her leg. Hermione held her breath and made her mind go blank with occulumency. After awhile of being still she forced herself to stand on her feet and screamed feeling the pain amplify in her legs. She took steps forward swaying and cried out when it hurt too much. When she was done in the bathroom she walked back into her room and getting a feeling she was going to lose her balance any second now she grabbed onto her dressing table. For a minute she rested her upper half on it and then she slowly looked up. The mirror reflected her appearance back at her and she blinked a couple of times before laughing out loud, only it sounded like she was struggling for breath.

She didn't look very good but it wasn't the worst she'd ever looked. Her hair was a mess, she could see a mild bruise on her neck and one of her ear lobes was bloody. She looked down to inspect the small cuts on her palms again, she'd noticed them in the bathroom and been slightly alarmed before remembering she'd mindlessly crawled over broken glass. Hermione knew she was no healer but going to the hospital wing right now would arouse suspicion. She shakily raised her wand and started to fix herself as best as she could. At the end she looked in the mirror again and thought she'd done pretty well. The bruise on her neck had considerably faded and her ear lobe was no longer covered in blood. Most of the cuts on her palms had healed but the deep ones although improved were still visible.

With a moan she made herself stand without support and then she stumbled towards the bed before collapsing on it. After a few seconds rest she slowly slid under the quilt and as she turned on her back she gasped. She could feel a bump on her head that she hadn't been aware of before but it wasn't surprising. All that hair pulling and her skull having been repeatedly banged against something had obviously resulted in it. Hermione raised her magical stick with effort and cast a numbing spell on the bump. Intense pain suddenly took over her body and letting her wand hand drop she cried out.

Merlin, the potion seemed to be wearing off already and if memory served her right she didn't have another bottle. Damn it, hopefully she'd be able to fall asleep and it would all go away. She weakly pushed some of her untidy hair out of her face and lifted her wand with a trembling hand. To hell with getting changed Hermione thought as she gave it a wave and all the candles blew out but pitch black didn't descend upon the room. Gasping in pain she slid her wand under the pillow and let her eyelids drop down. Couple of seconds later she realised something wasn't right and she snapped her eye wide open. Merlin's beard, either she was hallucinating or dreaming. Her window-weak purple light was coming from it. Fuck, it was those glowing flowers Tom had given her. Hermione suddenly felt very angry with herself for keeping them. No matter their beauty she shouldn't have liked something made by Voldemort and with an urge to destroy them right now she made to retrieve her wand. Halfway she stopped with a cry, it was hurting way too much to move. The damned chrysanthemums could stay overnight but she was getting rid of them first thing in the morning.

She closed her eyes and trying to distract herself from the pain in her muscles she imagined Tom falling to his death. He couldn't possibly survive the so called accident, especially when he had this unexplainable weakened condition. She had full faith that next Friday was the day the world would become Voldemort free, unless he had a Horcrux to be resurrected with. She snapped her eye open and her face took on an alarmed expression. Did Tom have a Horcrux? What year was he in when he asked Slughorn about Horcruxes? How old was he meant to be when he killed his muggle family? She was sure she knew this information but with the pain and her need to sleep dominating her brain she couldn't remember. The young dark lord was at Hogwarts now so if he had managed to make Horcruxes the only possible ones were Marvolo Gaunt's ring and his diary.

The diary-what had Harry said about preserving the memory of something? Ah yes, the diary's Horcrux had told him it'd preserved the memory of its 16 year old self and Tom was 17 now so that meant- Hermione her heart skipped a beat. Oh God, he already had Horcruxes. She swore loudly and creased her forehead. She'd been so focused on killing the living form of the dark lord that she'd almost forgotten about the possible parts of him trapped in objects. Great, as if things weren't hard enough for her. After he was dead she'd have to find and destroy them to make sure Voldemort was gone forever. Hopefully he hadn't hidden them outside of Hogwarts otherwise her job was going to be a lot more difficult, especially if he'd entrusted one of his young death eaters to keep it at their house. Hermione doubted it though, Malfoy and his boys had shown too much rebellious behaviour that day which most likely meant the group was in its early stage of development before it learnt to blindly follow its leader, and therefore it wouldn't make sense for someone intelligent as Tom to trust them to keep anything of his, even if they didn't know it was a Horcrux.

To her great annoyance all of this was theoretical, after so many weeks of being here she still didn't know for certain if Malfoy and his gang were Tom's death eaters in training or not. But since Dumbledore had insisted Voldemort had recruited them at school she had to presume they either were or the heir of Slytherin was planning to gather his followers later in the year.

Her limbs suddenly trembled with increasing pain and Hermione cried out. In seconds it stopped and with a sharp intake of breath she closed her teary eyes. She was sleepy but the pain kept holding her back her every time she got close to unconsciousness. Her drowsy mind started to wonder about Tom's Horcruxes. His ancestral ring was undoubtedly worthy enough to be made into a Horcrux but why the diary? Harry had said he'd brought it from a muggle shop but he hated muggles. So then why had he set foot in such a place and deemed something brought from there was important enough to be a Horcrux? Why hell was Tom Riddle keeping a diary in the first place? His brain was too sharp for it to be for recalling things so what was he using it for?

Wasn't writing in diaries a girly thing to do? That was sexist but after having two boys as best friends and spending months with the Weasley brothers she was sure it wasn't a popular amongst their gender. The young dark lord liked eating cherry cookies and had a diary. As far as she was concerned that was weird for a boy but maybe she was being too prejudiced. Wait, how could she have forgotten? Of course the diary wasn't for his use, it was meant to be bait to lure victims for his Horcrux to possess and bearing evidence of being purchased from a muggle store would give the impression of harmlessness. Yes, that would definitely qualify the ordinary diary to become a Horcrux in his eyes, what an evil scheming snake. Actually, calling him that suited him very well. She didn't care what the expert healers verdict would be but Tom couldn't possibly be 100% human. There was definitely a bit of snake in him, he'd hissed instinctively when she'd suddenly appeared and in his states of anger and discomfort he seemed to prefer speaking parseltongue. Harry had never reacted or behaved like that and she was sure it was a side effect of Tom having actual Slytherin blood.

Suddenly the pain in her lower limbs became intense and Hermione let a loud cry. She dug her fingers into the mattress and tears started to leak down her cheeks in abundance. She screamed as it got worse and attempting to take her mind off the pain she tried to think of something powerful, but all she managed was a rerun of her thoughts on Horcruxes and side effects of being blood related to Slytherin. Horcrux-side effects-Horcrux side effects? All of a sudden her limbs stopped hurting but the words Horcrux side effects remained in her head. She took in a deep breath and relaxed her fingers before a question made her eyes widen.

Was Tom's fragile condition a side effect of making a Horcrux? Merlin, that could be it or it might be because he'd made more than one. No wonder the library books hadn't been any help but the book she'd brought must have all the answers. Hermione felt like taking it out of her trunk right now but fatigue and new sensations of pain kept her bedridden until the logical side of her brain took over.

What good would it do her if she confirmed his condition was actually being caused by making a Horcrux? Her priority was to kill him, and right now she was in serious need of rest and sleep. When she had time on her hands she would read the book at her leisure, and it would be an interesting read indeed if it had information on the dark lord's condition. He deserved to suffer though, whether it was due to making a Horcrux or not. Voldemort had caused so much death and suffering that killing him once didn't seem enough. He ought to be reborn a thousand times and repeatedly murdered for it to come close to him paying for his heinous crimes. But there was no known way to make that happen so all she could do was hope that he spent his afterlife burning in hell. Heaven and Hell, were they real? Did God truly exist? She didn't know anymore, if he did he definitely wasn't the kind and compassionate God her parents had described. When people were dying all around her she'd prayed and prayed but divine help did not come, and only then had she started to first question the existence of God. Her Christian parents would probably be appalled but since they were dead she'd never know their true reaction.

Hermione began to cry loudly as memories of her Mum and Dad swam before her eyes. She wanted to be little again and under their protection but all of that was wishful thinking. She was alone, she had no one. Harry, Ron, the order, they were all gone. She'd been left to suffer and she was in so much pain, mentally and physically.

Merlin, the pain in her muscles was becoming unbearable. She'd cried so many tears she suddenly found she didn't have the energy to carry on and she settled for dry sobs. Soon her lungs tired and she lay still with her eyes scrunched shut. Only when the tremors in her limbs crossed the threshold of her tolerance did she cry out or scream weakly and for the rest of the time she gritted her teeth. She prayed and begged for sleep to come while visualising Tom lying dead on the ground and although her body continued to hurt it soothed her mentally. After many torturous minutes sleep took mercy on her and she drifted into unconsciousness but she didn't find peace. A new kind of mind torment began in the form of nightmares and Hermione began to twist and turn in her bed.

**Please leave me reviews to tell me what you think of the chapter, I've tried my best to make it high quality writing but sometimes I get stuck with grammar or certain words. **

**I do think I've overly used commas but the sentences sound better in my head that way. I've used the word triumphant-less and I don't even know if that's an actual word. Finally got my new laptop, a Samsung R580 and I love it so much. So sorry it took me 2 years to write a new chapter but I was depressed, and I swear everyday of those 2 years I was working on the chapter sentence by sentence. Finally I got to the end yesterday and cried. I never thought I'd get it finished and every time I'd look at a PM or a review asking for an update I'd feel guilty. **

**I'm still depressed and suicidal. Things are getting worse than ever, yesterday I wanted to hang myself but as usual I cried it out. I don't know how long it'll be till I post the next chapter but I'll try my best to post it as soon as I can. **

**A huge thank you to everyone that reviewed or sent a PM, and I did read every single one of them even though I haven't directly replied to all of them. **

**I tired replying but it said the PMs I received are on an old system and the functions been disabled. I can't figure out how to reply but I'm grateful for all those that did message me. **

**Below are responses to people that asked questions but that doesn't mean the ones that didn't aren't appreciated by me. **

**Cookiefan57: **I have no idea how long the entire story is going to be, I'm just going to keep writing until I finish telling the story I wanted to tell.

**Lisi the slayer: **Tom wasn't indirectly referring to himself, he was trying to say that since the Zulfitack plant is associated with dark magic people overlook the good stuff it can do. He was expressing his annoyance of people categorising magic in black and white and discriminating against something just because it's used in dark magic. In Tom's mind he doesn't distinguish between black and white as it's all about power and the benefits one can gain. I like that you attempted to read between the lines, it's nice to hear someone's interpretation.

**Lady Loralye: **I don't know how many chapters the story will have. To answer your other question, Tom Riddle from the 2nd movie is the best and will always be Tom Riddle in my eyes. I hated the Tom in the 6th movie and still do. There was nothing handsome and charming about the boy and it was bad acting.

**Wicked Sapphira: **Yes you're right hyenas shouldn't be in the UK. I wasn't really thinking, just needed something dangerous that could come out the forest and bite, my brother was watching lion king on TV and hyenas just seemed like a good idea at the time. If I'm not busy I might change that to some made up magical creature.

**Christina: **Boys can't get into girls rooms as a magical barrier stops them but girls can get into boys rooms. J.K Rowling had it like that, Hermione could come up to see Harry in his dormitory but when Ron tried to go the girls the stairs turned to a slide. I think the Hogwarts founders being ancient thought that the girls alone needed protecting and no girl in their right mind would set foot inside a boy's room, so they didn't make any of the boys living spaces gender selective. Bones being a daring girl of the 1940s sneaked into Longbottom's room with him, so you see nothing was preventing her from going into his room but he can't get into hers.

**M.H. Bay: **Yes time has flown by but to me it doesn't' seem long. When your very sad you kind of withdraw from the world and get stuck in your mind, then one day you look at the calendar and go, oh my God, is that the date.

**This chapter nearly incorporated all the chapters I have written so far, and since I haven't written for so long many of you whilst reading may have come across things that weren't clear or you couldn't remember. Below I have made a list of things that people might want to look up and referenced the chapter to make it easier to locate: **

The elf bringing Hermione clothes etc – Chapter 4

Hermione finding the uniform on the hospital wing bed – Chapter 5

Hermione trying to kill Tom on the astronomy tower – Chapter 6 

Hermione forgets to mention the full moon when answering a question on blood grass – Chapter 11

Hermione's first wand battle with Tom and her confusion on noticing red on his shirt after she punches him on the chest – Chapter 12

Hermione first witnesses Tom killing owls – Chapter 13

**Hermione** wonders if Tom took a cotton reel from the hospital wing, **Malfoy** calls her a mudblood in front of the whole class, **Dippet** gives her detention for a whole year every Friday and **Tom** tells her to try crucioing larger animals after realising she'd crucioed a spider – Chapter 14

Hermione first uses advanced Occulumency – Chapter 15 

Tom washes blood from her face – Chapter 16

Hermione burns Tom's handkerchief to stop Susan from keeping it and **Tom** attaches Halloween a decoration for her – Chapter 17 

Hermione and Tom's dancing lesson – Chapter 19 

**Tom **stating Hermione's blood status doesn't bother him and the **Halloween** dance – Chapter 21

Accidental death of house elf lolly – Chapter 22

Aurors question Hermione and Tom and Tom's reaction to an aurors closeness – Chapter 23

**Hermione **comes across Tom's book written by Albertus Magnus who was working on further uses on dragons blood, and **Tom** tortures Malfoy and his gang in a classroom – Chapter 24 

**Tom's** reaction after looking in a mirror and him smashing it with his fist. **Hermione** gets the idea to kill Tom in a quidditch match and **Hermione** gets a bottle of dreamless sleep potion from the hospital wing when she goes to see if she's successfully injured a Slytherin quidditch player – Chapter 25 

**Xavian** calls Tom queer in the great hall, **What** is a broom cursing potion and how it works?, **Hermione **discovers Tom's liking for Cherry cookies, **Hermione** accidentally burns Tom's Zulfitack flowers and **Tom **spares her from the Cruciatus curse – Chapter 26 

**Susan** asks Hermione to come see the BDSM section in her new picture book, **What** is a silver bell flower and why Hermione needs to get one? – Chapter 27

**Shiv** gives Hermione a free pack of cookies, **More** info on Solanum nicrum, **Hermione** suspects Bones and Longbottom of fornification and **Tom** gets mad at Hermione for staring at him in his quidditch uniform – Chapter 28

**Oh and I forgot to mention. The dialogues that have been copied or paraphrased from the Harry Potter series are owned or inspired by J.K Rowling, die hard Potter fans should be able to identify them. Don't forget to review, look forward to reading them. **


	30. Lying is a good thing

Hermione's room was bathed in sunlight coming through the window. She lay awake on the bed with her eyes closed and her face had an expression of anguish. She wished to sleep for another hour or two but her body hurting all over was making that impossible. After a moment she snapped her eyes open and as she made herself sit up she gasped. God, the pain was awful. She didn't think she could take it anymore, she had to get to the hospital wing fast.

Tears leaked down her cheeks as she left her room and when she stepped out of the common room door her vision began to swim. Persephone shouted something from the painting but she was in too much pain to care. While moving along the corridor she began to feel dizzier and dizzier, and she suddenly felt grateful she wouldn't have to attend classes since it was a Saturday. As her knees became weak she thought she was going to collapse but she managed to make it to the hospital wing door before crashing to the floor.

"Let me in" Hermione cried out, finding herself too frail to knock or draw her wand and soon the door opened to reveal Madam Whittaker.

"Merlin, Maya" she said drawing her magical stick with an alarmed expression before levitating the bushy haired witch onto a bed. "What happened?" Madam Whittaker said bending down and she was about to give her wand a wave when Hermione grabbed her wrist.

"Pain" she croaked. "The potion"

"Let me do a check up spell then I'll-"

"I need the potion" She shouted. For a second Madam Whittaker looked taken aback and then she rushed into her office. Hermione closed her eyes and breathing deeply she put her hands on the sides of her head. A couple of seconds passed before she heard advancing footsteps and then the sound of something being placed on her bedside table. She turned her head towards it and opened her eyes to find a familiar red bottle with the words, potion for pain relief. She took out the cork with shaky hands and noisily gulped all the liquid inside. As she set the bottle back on the bedside table she realised the metallic aftertaste was missing, come to think of it the whole potion had tasted different. Hermione turned her head to ask why that was and froze with a frightened expression. Tom was standing near her bed and Madam Whittaker was nowhere to be seen. Merlin's beard, that meant he'd put the bottle there. Suddenly something started to constrict her airways and she made to draw her wand when he summoned it.

"Anapneo won't work" Tom said twirling her wand. "Relax, it'll be over soon" God in heaven, he'd poisoned her. She tried to shout for Madam Whittaker but her voice was barely above a whisper.

"What did you feed me?" Hermione wheezed out and trying to get up she knocked the bottle of the bedside table. Meeting the floor it shattered loudly and Tom glanced at it with an annoyed expression. All of a sudden Hermione's airways opened and to her surprise all trace of pain was gone from her body.

"What did you break?" Madam Whittaker said running out the office door.

"Nothing to worry about madam" the dark lord said magically repairing the bottle. "She accidentally dropped it"

"Has she drunk the potion?"

"Yes"

"Are you still in pain?" the Hogwarts healer said addressing Hermione and the bushy haired witch nodded to say no. As Madam Whittaker cast several spells on her she stared at Tom questioningly and he stared back expressionlessly. "There's nothing seriously wrong with you" the female healer said lowering her wand. "Just muscle soreness all over" she continued creasing her brows. "Did you engage in muggle combat?" Madam Whittaker asked with a disapproving tone.

"I-err-yes" Hermione said thinking it was a great excuse. "Last night I said to one of my friends muggles are stupid, I meant it in reference to their desperate attempt to deny all things magical to the point of ridiculousness" she said wildly inventing from the denial stories she'd heard from Mr Weasley. "Someone who didn't like what I said decided to beat me to death" she said emphasising the last two words and Tom looked away from her.

"You should immediately report this to Dippet" Madam Whittaker said jumping to her feet.

"There's no need" Hermione said with a worried expression, fearing she'd call Dumbledore. "It's been resolved, Professor-err-I can't remember the name I haven't been here very long-" She said creasing her forehead to make it look like she was thinking hard. "-said they would get a month's detention" she added after pausing for a second.

"Why didn't you come to me right away?" Madam Whittaker said sounding angry but in a protective way.

"I was so sleepy and it honestly wasn't hurting so bad at the time" she said looking apologetic.

"That explains why your dress is so creased" the Hogwarts healer said with a friendlier tone. "And the awful hair" she added with a chuckle.

"Couldn't be bothered to change" Hermione said sheepishly. "Can you get rid of these?" she said showing her palms with a mock afraid expression.

"How did you-" Madam Whittaker started sternly.

"Broke a mirror in the fight" she said hurriedly and Whittaker mumbled something about girls these days before healing the cuts.

"Did the dreamless sleep potion work?" the Hogwarts healer suddenly asked and Hermione instantly thought of last night's nightmares. The expression on her face must have answered her question as Madam Whittaker proceeded to tell her not to worry and from the corner of her eye she noticed Tom disappear into the office. "Riddle helped me make a batch this morning that's even concentrated" Madam Whittaker said with fond expression.

"I see" the head girl said icily and noticing the puzzled look on Whittaker's she forced a smile.

"Something this potent would be hazardous if he hadn't found a way to neutralise the by products" the healer continued sounding proud. "Can you get, Miss Granger-" Whittaker started as she turned around. "-where did he go?" she finished putting her hands on hips. In seconds the office door opened and Tom came out holding a purple bottle. "Ah, you've already got it" Madam Whittaker said pointing her finger. "Did you read my mind, Mr Riddle" she added jokingly and Hermione couldn't help but think maybe he did.

"No madam" the dark lord said with a smile. "A logical conclusion from Granger's look of distress when you mentioned the previous potion" he added sounding like a professor giving a lecture.

"You'd make an excellent healer" Madam Whittaker said summoning the bottle from his hand. "Have you considered it?"

"Yes, amongst other things" Tom said carefully. "I'm not really sure but you're doing an excellent job of persuading me" he continued with a charming smile and when Whittaker giggled like a school girl Hermione rolled her eyes. Like countless others the healer had fallen victim to Tom's fake charismatic personality, he only volunteered for his own personal gain not because he was interested in healing.

Speaking of volunteering, he had to have anticipated her arrival in the morning and knowing she'd want the pain killing potion he'd switched the liquid in the bottle with his own potion. She was sure of it, the normal pain reliever didn't have the power to erase all pain from an after crucio in minutes, and it certainly didn't have the minor drawback of mild strangulation for the first 30 to 40 seconds. What had he given her? Even with all the advancements in the future she'd never come across such a potion, therefore it had to be his own invention but why had he cared to trick her into drinking it in the first place? Care, what was she thinking? The dark lord did not care about her so why would he-? Of course, he didn't want to take the risk of someone realising she'd been subjected to an unforgivable, because he'd obviously crossed the crucio intensity limit last night since she'd lost total awareness.

"Here you go dear" Whittaker said placing the bottle of dreamless sleep potion on her lap and Hermione eyed it suspiciously before putting in her pocket. Riddle had made it and who knows what else he'd put in there when he'd gone to get it, there was no way she was drinking it.

The hospital wing door suddenly opened and a house elf walked in before bowing.

"Come in master, Turner" it said turning towards a shadowed figure behind it and a boy with both of his hands bandaged walked in. Hermione recognised him as the person she'd injured to get Tom on the quidditch team and even though it'd been for the greater good she couldn't help but feel guilty.

"You're just in time" Madam Whittaker said walking towards a shelf. "The ointment's ready"

"N-no" Turner stuttered as he took a step back. "I'll-I'll come ba-back later" he said with a fearful expression and his eyes darted back and forth between Tom and the door.

"It has to be put on now" the healer said lifting a dish filled with white paste. "Sit him there, Polly" she said pointing at the bed next to her, and as the house elf levitated Turner onto the mattress with wave of its hand Hermione watched in fascination and the dark lord's eyes lit up with greed.

"No I want to go" Turner said shakily as he got back on his feet.

"You is not well master, Turner" house elf Polly said tugging at his robes. "Please stay"

"Stop being so difficult boy" Whittaker said placing her hands on Turner's shoulders. "I promise it won't hurt" She said pushing him backwards and he reluctantly sat down. "If you need anything else, Maya, ask Riddle" she said glancing over her shoulder.

"No, I've got everything" Hermione said standing up and after she'd walked a past the dark lord she realised that wasn't true. Trying not to look angry she turned towards Tom and held out her hand. He narrowed his eyes but he didn't move. "My wand" she whispered after a few seconds and he walked closer to her. He suddenly touched her neck with his magical stick and dropping her hand she jumped back.

"Stay still" Tom ordered taking a step forward.

"Is everything alright back there?" Madam Whittaker called out.

"Just healing something Granger missed" he said touching her with his wand again and she remembered the bruise on her neck that she'd made shades lighter. She wanted to smack his stick away and tell him to go to hell but that'd make him angry so she resisted. This whole act of patience and submissiveness was getting to her, the Gryffindor in her wanted to strike him dead now but her newly acquired Ravenclaw and Slytherin traits held her back. Suddenly a patch of icy coolness touched her neck and Hermione took in a sharp intake of breath. As the sensation disappeared Tom took a step back and held out her wand. Resisting the urge to snatch it she took it from him as gracefully as she could and held onto the rod tightly.

"What was that for, Riddle?" she said lowering her voice. "Trying to convince Whittaker you'd make a caring healer" she finished venomously.

"No, I had her convinced three years ago" Tom said with a smug expression. "That mark on you was an eyesore" he continued with all emotion disappearing from his face. "I didn't want to look at it again and again since I don't have a choice but to frequently see you everyday" he said coldly.

"Did you-" she started glaring at him. "-forget you put it there?" she finished whispering as she noticed the house elf looking at them.

"I never forget anything learnt, heard, seen or experienced" Tom said sounding angry for the first time this morning and when he balled one of his hands into a fist she took that as a sign to cool it down.

"What did you put in the pain reliever?" she said calmly, intending to change the subject and half hoping he'd slip information in his state of anger. He immediately transformed into an emotionless picture perfect individual and then he raised an eyebrow that seemed to be saying, I know what you tried to do.

"Nothing, I gave you the normal pain relief potion" he said putting on a flawless confused expression.

"No you didn't" Hermione said in an angry low voice. "It tasted different and strangulation isn't one of the side effects"

"Why don't you prove it?" Tom whispered with his eyes on the house elf and then he looked back at her with half a smile on his face. Hermione gave him a dirty look before speeding towards the door but with his long legs he managed to beat her to it and held it wide open. Knowing he was doing this to get back at her she halted with a livid expression and a full smile almost blossomed on his face. "Good day, Miss Granger" he said prompting her to walk forward and the friendly words sounded like an insult to her ears.

"Riddle, always the gentleman" Madam Whittaker's voice suddenly sounded and keeping various swear words from escaping her lips she reluctantly walked through the door.

After Hermione had washed, changed and brushed her hair she fetched the silver bell flower and the Solanum nicrum from her trunk and then she put them in her bag. She was about to leave her room when she noticed the chrysanthemums Tom had given her. Why the hell did she still have them? Those flowers were so dead. She raised her wand towards the vase and was about to make them vanish when a knock sounded on her door. Lowering her stick she opened it and almost had a heart attack when she found Professor Dumbledore.

"Good morning, Miss Granger" he said cheerfully. "I'm glad you're wide awake, I had feared disrupting your decision to sleep in since you weren't at breakfast" he said looking over her shoulders and into her room.

"I'm a morning person" she said quickly stepping out and shutting the door behind. Crap, did he see those bloody flowers?

"Those chrysanthemums are magnificent" Dumbledore said with his eyes twinkling. Damn it, she should have destroyed them last night.

"They're replacement for Xavian Potter's flowers" She said knowing the professor would be able to sense she was telling the truth.

"I see" he said looking thoughtful. Well, at least he wouldn't think Tom had given her the flowers directly and start assuming things. "That's unusual for Mr Riddle" the professor added and she didn't confirm or deny it'd been Tom. She didn't have to, the uncanny perfection and glow of the petals said it all. "I was wondering if you know anything about the entrance painting being torn last night" Dumbledore said sounding serious.

"No professor" Hermione said lowering her gaze and when he stayed silent she looked up to find a stern expression on his face. Worry pooled in her stomach and she resisted the urge to tighten the grip on her bag. Slightest movement and he would notice, she couldn't afford that when the potion ingredients were in there.

"Are you in good health, Miss Granger?" he suddenly asked and the topic change unsettled her.

"Yes" she said in a voice more higher pitched than she'd intended and the professor bore his eyes into her. Thank God Tom had given her that potion otherwise she was sure Dumbledore would have found something wrong with her.

"I don't think the chrysanthemums are harmful" he said and she concealed her reaction of confusion. "I advise you to be wary of beautiful things, Miss Granger, often they are a disguise to lure you in" he continued with a grave tone and she knew he was referring to Tom. "There is no benefit in keeping something attractive if it does you serious harm" Dumbledore said dully and a sad expression momentarily showed on his face.

"In the future I will be cautious" Hermione said carefully and the professor's eyes shone with disappointment.

"If you ever need to speak to someone, no matter how grave the situation" Dumbledore said with a kind expression. "You can always come to me" he finished with a warm smile and she was suddenly reminded of the Albus Dumbledore of her time.

"Thank you, sir" Hermione said beaming back at him.

"Have a good day, Miss Granger" he said tipping his purple pointed hat with golden spirals.

"You too, professor" she said as he turned to leave and once he'd left the heads quarters she took a couple of deep breaths in relief.

Hermione sat on the stairs for awhile and when she thought it was safe she walked out the common room door. As she moved down the corridor she kept expecting Dumbledore to appear and to put her paranoia to rest she went to the library instead of the seventh floor. For fifteen minutes she read a book and after checking to make sure she wasn't being followed she made her way to the room of requirements as planned. Once inside she unpacked all the ingredients and alphabetically put them in a row. As she positioned the cauldron she suddenly felt knots in her stomach and when she lit the fire her hands shook. She took a step back and then a few deep breaths. Tom Riddle's death, Voldemort's downfall and her revenge, it all depended on this broom cursing potion. It had to be brewed correctly and she would make sure of that.

When Hermione felt confident she started to read the instructions. Then she worked away on the potion for hours, cutting ingredients carefully in the specified way and reading the information more than once to avoid mistakes. It was four in the afternoon when she finished and after wiping her forehead with her sleeves she sat on a stool. This had to be another one of the hardest potions she'd ever made in her life and so far there was only three on the list. After about a minute she got back on her feet and stared at the surface of the cauldron feeling anxious. The potion suddenly turned brown and she started to laugh loudly with happiness. It only turned that colour within two minutes if it had been made correctly and she'd done it.

Now it was required to shimmer for two days under low heat. After the first day it should turn lilac and then silver on the second. As it was Saturday afternoon she estimated it'd be done by Monday around the same time, so that meant she'd have three days and a half afterwards to sort everything else out since the quidditch match was on Friday. Hermione was so tired she didn't want to think about it anymore, deciding those days should be enough to plan the next part she opted to take a break from it all while she waited for the potion to be finished. She gave the hot contents in the cauldron another proud look and then she left the room of requirements with a smile on her face.

Hermione got into her bed feeling starved. She'd missed breakfast and lunch. Dinner was hours away and trying to pass time she tried to catch up on homework but she couldn't concentrate. Slowly tiredness took over and soon she fell fast asleep with her quill in hand. A loud tapping sound awakened her and she blinked in confusion before remembering why her bed was littered with parchment and what a long feather was doing between her fingers. She glanced at the clock to find an hour had passed and she was thankful the sleep had been naturally dreamless. The tap suddenly sounded again and she realised it was a school owl at the window. With a sigh she got out of bed and after letting it in she took the letter. The owl hooted and ruffled its feathers but it didn't go away. She set the envelope down and opened the window wider but the feathered creature still stayed.

"No food, shoo" she said motioning with her hands and after the third time the bird seemed to get the point and flew away hooting harshly. She closed the window and then she cleared all the stuff from the bed onto the table before going to the bathroom. After awhile she came out feeling refreshed and even though she hadn't eaten the short sleep had somehow managed to energise her.

Hermione suddenly remembered the letter, she tore open the envelope and as she read the note inside her eyes widened. It was from Tom and he wanted to meet up in the library in ten minutes to work on their potion's project. What the-crap, she was late-that was beside the point. What the fuck? Of all the times he could've seen her or could see her he thought now was the best time. It hadn't even been a day after his severe crucioing, how could he ask her to-of course- un-empathic behaviour was to be expected of the dark lord. Although the nap had made her vibrant her mind still felt overworked, she didn't feel like going but saying no to Tom wasn't a good idea. Swearing she grabbed her bag and walked out the door with an unhappy expression.

In the library she found the dark lord by himself at a table in the back and he appeared to be reading with his head bent down.

"You're late" he said without looking up.

"I read the message a minute ago" she said trying not to sound hostile. "So I'm not" He stayed silent for a few seconds then he looked up at her, as usual his face was expressionless and she wondered what kind of mood he was in.

"Sit" he said making a chair furthest from him pull out. Calm Hermione decided as she sat down since he hadn't reacted to what she'd said. "Search for Viktamax salvatum" Tom said pushing a pile of books towards her. "Make a list of all its properties and known reactions with other substances" He went back to his reading and an angry expression slowly worked its way onto her face.

So he expected her to mindlessly follow instructions without any explanation of what he was doing or why he was doing it, she wasn't here to be an unwanted assistant that he had to somehow keep busy. This was meant to be their project on preventing werewolf transformation but he'd obviously decided to make it exclusively his. Well, if he thought she wasn't going to protest he was wrong. Perhaps that's why he'd asked her to come so soon after the crucioing, he must've thought she'd easily give up all control if she was feeling weak. "Why aren't you searching, Granger?" the dark lord suddenly questioned with his eyes still cast down.

"Riddle, in case you forgot we're meant to be working together" Hermione said crossing her arms and he slammed down the book he was reading.

"You're the one that's forgetful" Tom said in a loudest voice that was permitted in a library and when he looked at up at her his expression made her almost wish she hadn't said that. "I told you in the morning and I'll tell you again, I never forget anything learnt, heard, seen or experienced" he said curling his left hand into a fist and he momentarily closed his eyes.

"I just meant to point out we're not working together" she said softly, holding back her anger.

"We are" he snapped.

"If we were then I'd know what-" Hermione started hotly.

"Let me make it easier for you to understand" Tom interrupted raising his voice. "I'm sitting here-" he said pointing at himself. "-and your sitting there" he said pointing towards her. "We're both here to work on the project so you see we are working together" the dark lord continued slowly, like she was complete retard and to add insult to injury he added a 'everything's going to be okay' smile.

"I'm not stupid, Riddle" she said in a low angry voice. "If we were actually working together you would have explained what you were doing and why. We're meant to share theories and ideas so we can solve the problem, not you on your own" Hermione finished emphasising the last two words and he glared daggers at her.

"I can manage on my own" Tom said clenching his hands into fists. "You're rubbish at potions" he continued nastily and she almost flinched at the words. "You'd create more problems instead of solving anything" he added with a sneer and her cheeks reddened from rage. "Listening to your useless theories and ideas would be a waste of time. I know what I'm doing, I can probably finish this project by the end of November instead of December" Hermione stopped herself from shouting, you're going to be dead on Friday and suddenly the knowledge made her feel loads better. "You'll effortlessly get the same mark as me so make yourself useful and search for Viktamax salvatum" the dark lord finished with a note of finality.

"No" Hermione said bravely, ignoring the voice in her head that advised against it.

"Now" Tom ordered pointing his wand with a furious expression. Instincts urged her to draw her magical stick but her mind seeing sense held her back. Merlin, what had she done. She was supposed to keep him happy and relaxed till Friday. Oh God, would he crucio her later for that. Maybe if she managed to calm him down and showed him how sorry she was he'd let it all go.

"I didn't mean to disobey you" she said in her best apologetic voice and his angry expression slowly disappeared. "I know you're miles better than me at potions" she continued lowering her voice, the truth of her words stung but just because he was more intelligent she refused to believe she was completely worthless and stupid. "It's not fair to say I'm completely rubbish without giving me a chance" Hermione immediately bit the inside of her cheeks. She shouldn't have said that, she was letting her emotions get the best of her again. Crap, this whole submissive act was driving her nuts. Well, the dark lord seemed unchanged so no harm done. Hermione hesitantly took a book from her pile and as Tom lowered his wand she strangely felt freed and oppressed at the same time.

"I can be unfair if I wish to" he suddenly said, making her freeze. "Life isn't fair, Granger" he almost hissed and he bent the quill in his hand.

"I know" she said worriedly eyeing the twisted feather. "It's just-I- I've never come across someone like you" she said uncertainly and she instantly regretted it, that statement was too unguarded for her comfort level but the dark lord remained unfazed. "I was curious to know what you've come up with" Hermione continued carefully choosing her words. "I thought I could help if I had more information, but if you won't allow me to work with you then that's fine" she said hurriedly before her anger took over and she opened the book in her hand with a little more force than necessary.

"Am I to understand you believe yourself to be capable of performing in the subject better outside of class" Tom said magically repairing his damaged quill. "Since you thought you could help" he added mockingly and a hint of smile touched his lips. Hermione wanted to kill him right now and she kept repeating the word Friday to calm herself.

"I consider myself to be good at potions, not the most excellent but good" she said in a low controlled voice. "That's the reason why I thought I could've helped, the key word being could, Riddle" she said trying to sound like she was stating a fact instead of taunting him and then she quickly looked down at the book with a fearful expression. That last bit didn't have to be said, would that be the thing that finally pushed him over the edge? Maybe if she engrossed herself in searching for Viktamax salvatum he'd be more inclined to let it slide.

Hermione's book suddenly closed with a snap and she jumped in her seat before looking up with a racing heart. Taking in the expression on his face her eyes widened, not in fear but in surprise. He didn't look angry at all, he looked-she wasn't sure if that was the right word but he looked livelier or maybe even thrilled. For the life of her she couldn't understand why and the uncertainness suddenly made her feel afraid again.

"I'm curious" Tom said tilting his head a little to the left. "How would you do outside the classroom environment on a project like this?" he said narrowing his eyes and she stopped herself from swearing out aloud. "Worse or unexpectedly better" he added un-tilting his head and irritation flashed on her face. Great, Voldemort the psycho genius was viewing her as some kind of an interesting experiment. If he had free reign he'd probably be like those Nazi scientists that'd experimented to satisfy wonderment and curiosity without any care for human life. Oh God, wasn't world war two happening-best not to think about it- it wasn't her fault. She couldn't eliminate every single evil person-actually it was 1945 so it was over, she felt relieved and saddened that she wouldn't have to personally do something about Hitler. "Worried what the result might be" Tom asked, breaking the silence that'd fallen between them and her attention snapped back to him.

"No, I don't think where I am affects my intelligence" Hermione said believing what she was saying. "The idea that it could is absurd" she said creasing her forehead.

"Perhaps" he said raising an eyebrow. "Just to satisfy my curiosity I'll allow your desperate need to feel more involved" the dark lord said emphasising the word desperate and she gave him an angry look. "On condition, that you give me a theory or an idea that isn't utter nonsense and has actual value" he said crossing his arms. "If you fail you will allow me to complete the project on my own and not inform Slughorn" Tom continued with a commanding tone. "Do you accept?" he questioned raising his wand. "Or would you prefer continuing the task best suited to you?" he said magically opening her book and one side of his lips stretched into half a smile.

Urgh, she wanted to claw his face out. She was capable of much more than searching for something in a book, she'd prove it. On second thought, that seemed like a bad idea. Wasn't the whole point of her act to make Voldemort believe himself to be superior so he never saw her as a threat? If she showed she was intelligent that would be the opposite of all she'd worked for. Proving herself to the Tom wasn't important, he'd be dead soon anyway. "Very disappointing" Tom said snapping her out of her thoughts. "But not unexpected" he added with a smug expression as he lowered his wand. "Now do as you were told" the dark lord said with a sudden cold voice. "And don't disturb me" he ended with a threatening tone.

Fuck this Hermione thought as she felt the surge of energy that always came whenever she was challenged, only this moment it seemed to have grown in potency. No, she wouldn't be Tom Riddle's willing doormat this time. Could one God damn potions theory really make her a danger in his eyes? Hell no, the dark lord was too bloody sure of himself. He was way high up there and just on one occasion she wanted the satisfaction of bringing him down a few pegs, even if he was dying on Friday. After all, such mental torture would not be possible on a corpse.

"Apology for the delayed response" Hermione said shutting her book with a loud snap. "I accept" she said raising her voice and she looked right into his eyes with a determined expression.

"My curiosity shall be satisfied after all" Tom said looking momentarily excited "If you wish to humiliate yourself do continue" he said leaning back in his chair and he gave her a cold smile.

Merlin's balls, she didn't actually have an answer. Had half of her brain gone into a fucking coma? That should have bloody occurred to her before she opened her mouth. Oh God, what could she say? She'd been so occupied with the broom cursing potion she hadn't read anything related to the project, but there must to be something she already knew that she could use. What though? "I didn't say you could take forever" the dark lord said icily as he resumed his less relaxed position and she swallowed. Okay, she just needed to calm herself. Using Occlumency she shut out all distractions and in seconds she had her answer, the Wolfsbane potion. It allowed the werewolf to keep its human mind so the ingredients used to make it had to be credible to apply in a theory for stopping transformation.

Oh Merlin, Wolfsbane didn't exist in the 1940s. Wait, wasn't that knowledge all the better for her to use since she could claim it as her own without anyone suspecting? Yes but revealing future information could have bad consequences. "Speak" Tom commanded with an angry expression and she opened and closed her mouth feeling unsure. "Leave" he said slamming his left palm down on the table and she almost jumped before coming to a decision. To hell with the consequences, the world owed her a favour. She was removing Voldemort and in return the use of information was a small price to pay. Besides, what she revealed would die with him soon so the chance of something going wrong was very slim. "Now" Tom hissed pointing his wand and she raised her hands in a sign of surrender.

"Sorry" Hermione said meekly. "I have many theories, just wondering which one's the best" she continued in a rushed voice and he slightly lowered his stick but his expression remained the same. "I think Monks-hood with liquid sliver has the most chance of retaining-" Hermione started bravely before deciding to omit the part about it only being the mind as it could look suspicious when she turned out to be 100% accurate.. "-the human side" she added after a seconds pause and it suddenly came to her attention that the dark lord's face had become emotionless. "The problem is the combination is most likely to prove so toxic that it could result in the death of the werewolf" she continued unsurely, reciting one of the many difficulties the inventor of Wolfsbane had faced and Tom slowly lowered his wand. "So we need an anti-poison that will keep the compound lethal enough to disable but not kill" she said lowering her hands. "Maybe Mandrake root and-" Hermione trailed off feeling she'd said too much. "I'm not sure" she lied and as she awaited the unreadable Slytherin's response she began to feel strangely nervous.

Suddenly an expression flashed across his face and the best she could interpret it as was a mixture between shock and disbelief. It was definitely a positive indicator but until she had verbal confirmation she couldn't get herself to relax.

"Monks-hood" Tom said in a low voice. "I've noted it down as one of the potential ingredients" he continued slightly creasing his forehead. "Combining it with liquid silver, that's a very interesting idea" he said casting his eyes down and she suddenly felt relieved and pleased at the same time. "Mandrake root as an anti-poison" the heir of Slytherin said slowly. "Unheard of" he added in a louder voice. "Not impossible but it will be difficult indeed" Tom said suddenly looking at her. "Unexpectedly better" he said tilting his head to the left and then he stared to stare at her, a few seconds later Hermione blinked on purpose.

Did he-was that-yes, it definitely was. The look of respect that he only reserved for his favourite Professors, he'd given her that look just now. The dark lord's emotionless face was back on again but she was wise enough to recognise anything seen on his face was never imagined. Joy bubbled up in her stomach knowing that he didn't see her as entirely stupid anymore and approved of her in some way. Suddenly guilt started to creep into her mind, why did the fact that Tom Riddle thought she was intelligent and almost on the same level as him make her feel so happy?

Well, future dark lord or not he was still a genius and it must be natural to react to a genius's appreciation like this. Except, she wasn't that intelligent because she'd cheated, Hermione allowed herself to feel a twinge of shame before pushing that information to the back of her mind and choosing to forget about it.

"I'll allow you to actually work with me" Tom said emphasising the word actually before moving his head back to the centre. "Because I'm choosing to be fair" he added with an arrogant expression. "There's nothing you could've done if I didn't want to honour our agreement" he continued with a cold smile and she felt like slapping him. Psycho, control freak, couldn't he be bloody normal for once in his-well, he was lord Voldemort after all.

"I'm very grateful for the opportunity" Hermione said mechanically and his smile turned into a smirk.

"We should research on liquid silver" the dark lord said with a sudden serious expression. "I'll look up on the way it reacts with other substances, you can look up its properties" he said levitating a book towards her.

"Okay" she said catching the hardback.

"Write down what you find" he ordered before placing a large parchment in the centre of the table and she nodded in response.

Soon silence filled the air except the sounds of pages being turned and the scratching of quills as they took turns to write on the parchment. While noting something down Hermione looked at his side of the sheet and couldn't help marvel at his handwriting. How the hell did he learn to write like that? Someone at the orphanage or self taught, most likely self taught.

As more time went by she found herself occasionally looking at him but each time was only for a few seconds. Hermione turned a page of her book and then her eyes locked onto the Slytherin once again. This time he was lightly tapping his fingers on the table and his eyes were glued to his book. She'd noticed he often did that with his fingers when he appeared to be deeply engrossed in reading but if he seemed to be skimming his fingers stayed still. Strange habit she thought as she looked away. As dinner time approached the dark lord snapped his hardback shut and drew his wand. "That's enough for today" he said flicking his stick at the parchment and it rolled itself up. Then he muttered incantations she didn't recognise and another roll of parchment appeared. "It's your copy" he said making it fly towards her and she caught it before it could settle. "Don't bring it with you next time, everything written on mine will instantly appear on yours" the dark lord said as he got on his feet, and as she gathered her things she made a mental note to look up the spell in her spare time.

As she left the library with Tom her eyes caught a painting of a woman looking at them and when they arrived at the heads quarters Hermione caught a flash of that woman next to Persephone. In the blink of an eye she couldn't see anyone but Hades and Persephone looking at them with smiles on their faces. Okay, she was just being paranoid. The portraits weren't spying on her, were they? Of course not, she shouldn't worry herself with stupid things when she had bigger things to think of. "Medusa" the head boy said making the door open and then he disappeared inside. She was about to follow him but after a glance at her wristwatch she turned around and ran.

As the doors of the great hall met her sight she speed forward with renewed vigour and only when she reached the Ravenclaw table did she allow her feet to pause. Not bothering to sit she grabbed a plate before summoning a roast chicken leg and bit into it hungrily. God, it so tasted good. She felt like she hadn't eaten in years and she just wanted to eat and eat forever.

"Maya" a female voice said loudly. Hermione turned towards it with her mouth full and found Susan's face greeting her. "Sit down" she said with a disapproving tone and only then did Hermione realise most people at the Ravenclaw table were looking at her. She quickly sat down and resumed eating. "Where the hell have you been all day?" Susan questioned and Hermione held up a hand before drinking some water.

"Slept late so I missed breakfast" she said wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "Then I got carried away with reading" she continued. "And other stuff" she added as Susan's expression turned disbelieving.

"Stuff" the Ravenclaw said raising an eyebrow.

"Essays and project work" the busy haired witch said without thinking and as Susan's eyes shot towards the Slytherin table Hermione felt like crying out in frustration.

"Project work" Susan said slowly. "With your partner, Tom Riddle" she continued with a teasing tone.

"He's not my-" Hermione started hotly. "We're just working together" she continued in a forced calm voice. "In a purely professional way" she added whilst giving the Ravenclaw a stern look.

"I didn't say you weren't" Susan said feigning ignorance.

"Right" she hissed as she looked back straight and then she resumed eating. A few seconds later her eyes unconsciously wandered to the Slytherin table before settling on the young dark lord. Tom suddenly locked eyes with her and it jolted her into realising she was looking at him. She slowly dropped her gaze and grabbed another chicken leg.

"I saw that" Susan whispered and Hermione bit into the roasted flesh with an uneasy feeling.

Half an hour later the bushy haired witch walked towards the heads quarters feeling sluggish from all the food she'd eaten. Suddenly a scream echoed through the corridor and she drew her wand before running towards the source. A boy in Gryffindor robes lying on the floor came in view and she halted.

"Mudblood" a male voice said making her jaws clench and the hold on her stick tighten. "Someone's luck just ran out" he added before stepping out of the shadows and Lestrange's face became visible.

"I agree" Hermione said pointing her wand. "Yours" she added venomously.

"Bitch" Lestrange hissed before firing a spell at her.

"Partying alone" she said effortlessly blocking it. "Did you get thrown out of we all love Malfoy club?"

"Shut up, mudblood" he roared as he began to throw dark spells at her.

"Hit a nerve, did I" she hissed as she deflected them all back at him. Lestrange blocked them all and her further attacks, proving he wasn't just some curious wizard dabbling in black magic. A sinister smile suddenly lit his face as he moved his wand in a complex motion and soon a stream of arrows began to shot out of it at an inhuman speed. "Levicorpus" Hermione roared, while barely managing to escape one of them and another one stuck into her bag. As the spell lifted Lestrange into the air and turned him upside down the new arrows from his stick crashed into the ground. But for some reason he wasn't making any effort to direct his wand at her or struggle. The production of arrows suddenly ceased and he appeared to have fixed his eyes over her shoulder.

"Die mudblood" Lestrange said with a hate filled voice.

"Don't fucking call me-" she started pointing her wand threateningly. An animalistic roar suddenly sounded behind her and Hermione froze. A female scream rang through the corridor and as she turned around the sight made her heart skip a beat. A three headed lion was advancing its way towards her and a frightened girl was still screaming at the sight of it. Hermione tried to make it vanish or shrink but it didn't work. Dark spells mildly injured it but it kept moving. "Crucio" she hissed and suddenly the golden coloured beast fell to its knees. The roars from the three heads were deafening and its thrashing seemed to shake the foundations of the corridor. The girl at the other end of the corridor stood quiet for a few seconds before running off and Lestrange seemed to be saying something but his voice was drowned out. Hermione lifted her spell and as the mutated lion lay panting she heard approaching footsteps. In a few seconds the beast sprang back in action and she subdued it again with the cruciatus. It was magically made of dark magic so it wasn't affected as an organic animal would be, a few more rounds of crucio should do it but with someone coming she'd surely get noticed. That must be what Lestrange intended since he knew she was skilled enough to hold it back and unless she wanted to get seriously injured or expelled slaying it was the only option. She lifted the cruciatus and took a step back. "Avada Kedavra" she said with an icy expression but before her spell could touch the animal it magically reappeared at a spot further away. Merlin's balls, that was impossi-, Fuck, Lestrange still had his wand and was obviously using it to-. Without looking behind her she summoned his stick and his taunting laughter filled the air. The distraction had cost her the advantage of distance and the three headed lion's paw almost touched her. "Sectumsempra" she yelled instinctively. As the spell sliced deep into its body part blood flew on her hand and the lion drew back with a roar.

"Avada Kedavra" a new male voice shouted and the three headed animal dropped dead before vanishing.

"Let me down" Lestrange demanded with a sudden terror filled voice.

Ignoring him Hermione turned her head to find it was Tom Riddle and the girl that'd screamed earlier was with him. She appeared as white as a sheet and her hands were clutching her dark hair. The dark lord whispered something to her, she nodded before walking away and as she left the corridor the Slytherin crest on her robe caught Hermione's eyes.

Tom made to raise his wand at a pleading Lestrange when Dumbledore and Dippet appeared.

"What is the meaning of this" Dippet screeched.

"Armando, let us not jump to conclusions" Dumbledore said calmly and he waved his wand over the unconscious Gryffindor that'd miraculously remained unscathed. The dark lord moved closer to her and she noticed a handkerchief in his left hand being held only by his finger and thumb. He did not offer it to her but she got the hint and took it discreetly.

"She did this to me" Lestrange said motioning towards Hermione.

"He attacked me when I found him hurting a student" She said defensively with her hands behind her back as she cleaned blood of her hand with Tom's cloth.  
"Is this true, Tom?" Dippet questioned.

"Yes, sir" the dark lord said automatically even though he hadn't been there to witness it.

"The evidence is here" Dumbledore said drawing attention to the reawakened and confused appearing Gryffindor.

"Well, yes I know" Dippet mumbled with an annoyed expression. "Did Lestrange hurt you boy?" the headmaster asked the Gryffindor.

"Yes" the boy said with a frightened look.

"Go to the hospital wing" Dumbledore told the boy. "His actions will not go unpunished" he added with a reassuring look and after a nod the Gryffindor started to walk away with his hands wrapped around himself. "A lovely but a bothersome spell" the transfiguration professor said making the strewn arrows on the floor vanish. "Plethora of sharp weapons followed by an illusion of the lion of kazama almost never fails to unsettle ones opponent" he said shifting his gaze towards her.

Illusion, damn it. Of course it was, an actually kazama lion was too powerful to merely construct with magic. She should have remembered that instead of being so panicked, all creatures of dark illusion spells could display realistic actions of being harmed but could not actually harm anything. Hermione caught the young dark lord's eyes as he slowly distanced himself from her and he gave her look that said, 'you should have known that'. She sharply looked away almost feeling embarrassed. A question at the back of her mind asked why she wasn't feeling anger like the previous times she'd failed in front of him and she didn't have an answer. "The spell to reverse dark illusions is a good choice to undo it, Miss Granger" Dumbledore said raising his voice and she suspected from the expression on his face he somehow knew Avada Kedavra had been used.

"Yes, sir" she said avoiding his eyes and she saw Tom's pupils move towards the ceiling in the fashion of being an alternative to rolling your eyes that clearly said he strongly disagreed with Dumbledore.

Dippet suddenly released Lestrange and he cried out in pain as he crashed to the floor. The transfiguration professor gave him a look that said he could've done it gently and Dippet scowled.

"Mr Lestrange, bullying and abuse is not acceptable at Hogwarts" the headmaster said raising his voice in an attempt to look intimidating. "You will serve a month's detention under-" Dippet paused with an unsure expression "Under-"

"Merrythought" Dumbledore interjected and Lestrange's expression darkened. "Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir" Lestrange forced out as he got on his feet. "I deeply regret my actions, it will not happen again" he added with a voice that sounded more robotic than apologetic. "What I did was wrong but what the honourable head girl did to me was also wrong" he continued with a rushed voice and he glanced at Tom with an unsure expression. What the hell did she do wrong? He'd attacked her and she'd defended herself. "The protocol does not allow her power to punish me like that" What fucking protocol? "If people in prominent positions,-" he added with an oily tone and Dippet's face turned red while Dumbledore gave him a disapproving look. "-like my father were to learn that regulations within Hogwarts-"

"Yes, you are right" Dippet said cutting in loudly. "Miss Granger will be punished" Bloody Merlin, there was a head's protocol saying she couldn't hang misbehaving students upside down. 1940s were so crap, at her time anyone attacking with dark magic could be restrained in whatever way as long as they weren't seriously hurt or killed. Umbridge had even extended that power under her dictatorship of Hogwarts to allow students to be harmed if they did something out of line, but then again she was sadistic and it'd clearly been illegal under ministry law.

"I advise you to read the head's handbook cover to cover" Dumbledore said solemnly.

"I will, sir" she forced out as she pocketed the handkerchief by hiding it inside a fist. The heir of Slytherin caught her eyes once more and gave her a look that seemed amused. Yeah, he definitely thought she'd entirely read it. The joke would be on her if he knew the truth and also her life in danger. The reason why she hadn't bothered to read everything was because she'd thought the rules from the future she was from was the same in the past, and here he was thinking she'd slipped up in hiding her intent to break the rules.

"100 points from Ravenclaw" Dippet suddenly said and she stopped blinking.

"100" she repeated slowly, everyone in her house was going to hate her once they found out.

Yes, Miss Granger" the headmaster said. "You are not setting a good example as head girl, you must understand the seriousness of your actions" A faint smile appeared on Lestrange's face and a pleased look flashed on the dark lord's visage. "Tom, 40 points to Slytherin for your assistance" Dippet added.

"Thank you, sir" the heir of Slytherin said raising an eyebrow at her and she gave him a dirty look. The slimy snake, of course he'd be pleased with Slytherin being ahead with the house points.

"Mr Lestrange, although your spell is part illusion" Dumbledore said walking towards her. "It is dark, forbidden at Hogwarts -" he said coming to a pause and he raised his hand "-and also presents a danger" the professor added whilst pulling out an arrow stuck to her bag. "50 points from Slytherin" Dumbledore said with a sudden cheerful voice as he made the harmful stick vanish and an expression of displeasure plastered on Lestrange's face. Then the professor and the dark lord locked eyes. Tom's face didn't betray any emotion and nor did he look away. Seeming to be the only person unaware of the silent battle Dippet looked at his wristwatch and mumbled something to himself.

"Albus, I have an appointment in 10 minutes" the headmaster said out aloud. "Take care of this" he tried to say in a commanding tone but it ended up sounding like a request. Without waiting for a reply Dippet turned around and started to walk away. Dumbledore suddenly looked away from Tom and with a quick flick of his stick he summoned Lestrange's wand.

"I would advise bed rest, Miss Granger" the professor said warmly. A smile formed on her face and quickly disappeared when she saw the dark lord giving her with a cold look. "Try to have a goodnight" he added with a serious expression.

"You too professor" she said feigning a confused appearance. Merlin, his suspicion of her involvement with the dark lord was getting worse.

"Goodnight, Mr Riddle" Dumbledore said turning his gaze towards the dark lord.

"Goodnight, sir" Tom said with an expressionless face.

"Mr Lestrange, my office" Dumbledore said motioning at him before starting to walk towards the nearest exit and Lestrange glanced at Tom before following the professor.

Soon Hermione found herself alone with the dark lord, his eyes were on her and his face displayed no emotion. She stared back at him with an urge to fidget but she didn't give in. He suddenly started to walk towards the heads quarters and as she followed she wondered if Tom was angry. She'd told Dumbledore nothing, even acted her best to make him believe everything was okay so it couldn't be that, it had to be Lestrange then. Wait, that didn't make sense. If he'd wanted to keep Lestrange safe he could've blamed the whole thing on her and Dippet would've fallen for it. But he'd sided with her, why? Was it to piss of Dumbledore or not to appear particularly favouring his fellow Slytherins? Most likely the latter, or maybe he'd intended this to punish Lestrange for something. Malfoy and co hadn't been with him, was there truly discord amongst Voldemort's followers? Was Lestrange Tom's death eater in training or was he just afraid of Tom? His behaviour could indicate either reason, if only she had solid evidence but at least she knew who Voldemort was. Kill the root and the weed should no longer present a problem.

As the painting of Persephone and Hades came in view she saw the occupants were surrounded by a group of people and they seemed to be in some sort of a meeting. Noticing her and the dark lord approaching the painted people began to flee except Hades.

"Password" Persephone's husband said trying to appear fearless and the second Tom answered Hades fled.

With a feeling of dread she followed him inside the heads quarters and as her eyes fell on Longbottom and Bones she breathed out in relief. Young Voldemort wouldn't hurt her in front of them and once she got to her room she'd be 100% safe.

"Hey, Granger" Bones said with a huge smile on her face. "We were just talking about you" she added glancing at her boyfriend.

"Don't worry, only good things" Longbottom said cheerfully.

"Nothing evil" Bones said with a high pitched voice. "Because you're not evil, you're good so only good things" she continued before ending the sentence with nervous laughter and Hermione gave her an awkward smile. She had more important things to do in life then spread damaging gossip about them being in a bedroom together. She certainly wasn't good but she wasn't evil either. Was there a word to describe someone in between?

"Cynthia, has told me of the huge favour you did" Longbottom said pulling her out of her thoughts. "If you ever need anything don't hesitate to ask me"

"Or me" Bones added with another huge smile that was clearly fake. Tom turned towards Hermione with an amused expression and raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"Err-thank you" Hermione said whilst giving the dark lord a blank look.

"Well, that's settled then" Longbottom said looking relieved. "Goodnight, Granger" He said giving her a warm smile. "Riddle" he added acknowledging the dark lord with a slight bow of his head.

"Goodnight" Tom said curtly, bowing his head in return.

"Sweet dreams everyone" Bones said appearing calmer than before.

"Same to you" Tom said politely. Soon the pair in love started to climb the stairs to their rooms and Hermione started to rush towards hers, intending to get inside at the same time or before them. "Granger" the dark lord said loudly and she froze with a racing pulse. As much as she wanted to ignoring his direct call would have deadly consequences and so she made herself turn back towards him. For a couple of seconds he stared at her blankly and she stared back almost unblinking.

"They fear you enough to fall at your feet in service" Tom suddenly said and she blinked. "You've learnt something they don't want made public" he added with a thoughtful expression. She did nothing to confirm or deny it and silence from him again said he didn't care to learn more.

The sudden appearance of his wand made her eyes widen in fear but he didn't aim it at her. He flicked it to his left and made the red armchair move itself next to her.

"Sit down" the dark lord said gesturing at it and taking a deep breath she did as she was told.

He moved to stand in front of her at an arm's length and his piercing eyes made her palms sweat. She didn't like sitting down while he remained standing. It made him appear more tall and intimidating. "Prince, told me something interesting" Tom said softly stroking his wand and she wondered who he was talking about. "The levicorpus spell, all sources state the spell only allows you to pick up the intended object and manipulate its direction in air" Wait, wasn't that spell Snape's invention because it was written in the half blood prince's book. Prince, Eileen prince, Snape's mother. The Slytherin girl that'd seen her in the corridor with Lestrange must have been Eileen prince. "But your spell kept the intended levitating in air upside down" he continued narrowing his eyes and she swallowed. Crap, think clearly. 1940s, the spell couldn't have purely been Snape's invention and must exist in this time; otherwise Tom wouldn't have known the incantation Levicorpus. Merlin, he'd used the spell many times in front of her before, why the hell hadn't she noticed it was different than the one she was used to? Focus, Hermione. He didn't think it could hang you upside down which meant a different version of the spell was introduced in the future, most likely during James Potter's time since Lupin had said it was quite popular all over Hogwarts then. Since it'd been written in half blood prince's potion's book Snape must have invented the altered version to use on James and friends and unintentionally taught them another spell to use against him, therefore James and co's promotion might have led to it becoming a trendy spell to use at that time.

"Explain" Tom ordered in a loud voice and her jaws clenched. Merlin's balls, she couldn't say her future potions master had invented a variant. Well, she'd just have to be the inventor then wouldn't she. Was that right? Offering future information once again and drawing so much atten-. "Speak" the dark lord hissed interrupting her thought and she flinched as he poked his wand under her chin. It was minor information compared to wolfsbane and he'd be dead on Friday so there couldn't be any harm.

"I modified the spell" Hermione said confidently. "It makes it hard for them to attack upside down if they still have their wand" she continued, stating a fact she'd found when battling less skilled death eaters. She suddenly felt his wand almost slip of her skin, that meant she must have unsettled him but his expression revealed nothing. Seconds past in uncomfortable silence before he withdrew his wand and took a step back. Then with a wave of his wand he summoned the green armchair and sat down facing her. Soon she found her eyes getting drawn to his pale left hand and the stick being twirled by it.

"The spell you used to injure the beast was no doubt dark" the heir of Slytherin said tilting his head a little to the left and she bit the inside of her cheeks. "I've read extensive volumes on black magic and I don't recall Sectumsempra" the dark lord finished silkily and she felt a chill go down her spin as the letter S in the incantation made it almost sound like parseltongue. Oh, God, he'd heard her use Snape's invented spell. "Where did you learn it from, Granger?" he said moving his head back to the centre and the excitement in his voice made her involuntarily shiver. Hermione pressed her lips into a thin line as something clicked in her head, there was the answer to why he'd sided with her in the corridor. As expected he was selfish and hungry for knowledge. He wouldn't have been able to question her this soon if Dumbledore or Dippet had taken her away, same reason why he must've given her the handkerchief because blood on her would've definitely made the transfiguration professor suspicious. "Tell me" he commanded in a low dangerous voice and as his fingers curled she bit her lips.

Holy mother Mary, he was getting angry. What should she say? That she'd read it somewhere, no that wasn't a good idea. He'd definitely want to know more, his thirst for knowledge was like an addiction to some powerful drug. If she couldn't supply the information and he thought it was buried in her mind he'd most likely rip it from her head. That is if he knew legilimency with a wand but she couldn't take that risk as it would expose all her secrets and forever destroy her chance to kill him. An answer that would eliminate a reason to invade her mind, there was only one she could think of right now. "Do you need help loosening you tongue?" the dark lord said raising his voice as he clenched his hands into fists and she fearfully shook her to say no before taking a deep breath.

"I invented the spell" Hermione said proudly whilst looking him in the eye. Tom's hands immediately uncoiled, his expression went blank and for a moment he looked taken aback. She didn't dare blink, was that a positive reaction?

"You invented the spell" he suddenly said and he started to look at her with such interest that she felt knots in her stomach.

"Yes" the head girl whispered trying to get rid of the weird feeling.

"Do you have the counter spell?" he asked softly.

"N-no, n-not yet" she stuttered. Was that the right response? Well, something might seem off if she didn't want to invent the counter spell.

"What other spells have you invented" Tom tried to keep his voice calm but she didn't miss the hint of controlled excitement. She stared at him unmoving, trying to keep a troubled expression off her face. "A witch with your level of intelligence can obviously manage to invent more than one spell." he continued persuasively, encouraging her to speak.

Hermione could see his logic, if she capable of inventing spells then she must've invented more than one. After the way she'd falsely convinced him of her abilities in potion theories and spell invention he obviously now thought she was highly intelligent. Her chest suddenly swelled with a feeling she didn't like, she was pleased that he found her very intelligent even if it wasn't 100% true. Well, it all had to be down to the appreciation of a genius thing even if the person was a psycho mass murderer. It couldn't and it didn't mean anything else, there was no other reason. Now, how to wrap everything up without getting tortured?

"I-" she started, hoping her answer wouldn't make him violent. "-I-err-" Hermione trailed of finding the way he was looking at her incredibly disturbing. He didn't seem to notice she wasn't talking and he continued to stare at her like she was some goddess that'd descended upon earth. Merlin, that was very similar to the look he reserved for Merrythought. She didn't know why but the knowledge suddenly made her feel incredibly happy and very uneasy at the same time.

"Are there so many that you need time to select the one worthy of mentioning?" Tom suddenly said with half a smile and she remembered saying something similar about the potion's theory earlier. So this was what was getting him all excited, she'd have to burst his bubble soon. Hopefully he wouldn't get too upset and curse her.

"Spell invention is a recent venture for me" she forced out. "Sectumsempra is my first, I'm working on countering it" To her relief he didn't look angry but if he was disappointed he concealed it well. After a few seconds the dark lord calmly stood up and magically put his chair back in its place.

After he'd disappeared into his room Hermione rubbed her temples feeling relieved before making her way up to her chamber. She quickly changed and slipped into her bed feeling exhausted. Today hadn't been a bad day. The broom cursing potion was well on its way to being complete and she'd kind of unintentionally proven to Tom she was more intelligent than he thought. Everything was going perfectly, hopefully it would all work out in the end.

She turned off the light with a wave of her wand and then turned her head towards the purple glowing chrysanthemums with an annoyed expression. Fuck, why did she still have them? Sleep pulled heavily on her eyelids and she didn't feel like moving anymore. The flowers are very pretty she thought sleepily. No they're from Voldemort, must destroy them, she suddenly thought struggling to open her eyes. One more night couldn't do any harm another part of her mind whispered and soon she fell fast asleep.


	31. Another problem

At breakfast the Ravenclaws glared daggers at Hermione and she pretended not to notice. Crap, they all somehow knew she'd lost them 100 house points but how? Hogwarts staff could definitely be ruled out, hurting her by spreading gossip wasn't Tom's style and they'd parted on good terms last night so it was obviously Lestrange. She looked towards the Slytherin table and found him sitting with Malfoy and his gang. Noticing her gaze he smiled at her nastily, then he raised his goblet towards her before bowing his head mockingly and Malfoy roared with laughter before patting him on the back. She gave him a dirty look before looking away and then she looked back again. Her eyes subconsciously wandered over and settled on Tom. He was reading a book, his left hand was on top of the table and its fingers were slowly tapping the surface. Before it wouldn't have meant anything to her but now she knew it meant he was really focused on whatever he was reading.

"Hey, Maya" Susan's voice suddenly said and she hastily looked away.

"Shouldn't you be mad at me?" Hermione said fetching a buttered toast with a gloomy expression.

"It doesn't matter." The Ravenclaw said lowering her voice. "We didn't have enough points to win any way, they just need someone to blame and right now you're the perfect candidate" Great, she was putting her life at risk to keep these peoples futures safe from Voldemort and they were making a scapegoat out of her. "Don't worry, they'll get over it in a couple of days."

"I see" she said before taking a bite out of her toast.

"I know Slytherin's can be slimy bastards" Susan started hesitantly. "Did you attack Lestrange for just asking the time?" she blurted out and Hermione's expression turned murderous.

"No, I did not" the head girl hissed. "Since when did a Slytherin's word of mouth become the gospel of truth?"

"I-erm-I didn't mean to-" she started to mumble dropping her gaze. Hermione suddenly noticed Xavian and his friends making their way towards the Ravenclaw table and her brows creased in irritation. Merlin's balls, the annoying boy that couldn't take multiple hints. "-I never actually believed-" Deciding she'd had enough this morning Hermione stood up and grabbed another buttered toast. "-I just-"

"Save it" the head girl snapped before speeding towards the great hall doors and then exiting.

After a trip to her room to fetch her bag Hermione was walking towards the library with her eyes on her weekly homework list. Usually, being in advanced classes for all her subjects would've been great if most of her time wasn't taken up by subject - Kill Voldemort'. Sudden footsteps made her look up and finding Tom's visual she couldn't help but think of the saying 'speak of the devil'. Actually, 'Speak of the angry devil', Hermione thought snapping her eyes back to the list. His expression, uniform and broom said it all. He had quidditch practice and that always meant a dark lord with super foul mood. The second he was gone from the passageway she felt at ease, and making a mental note to stay out of his way today she continued towards her destination.

At lunch time the great hall was missing a lot of students and Hermione appeared confused for a second before remembering it was a Hogsmeade weekend, so if the pupils weren't skipping lunch they must be eating out. She was glad that fewer Ravenclaws at the table equalled to fewer hateful looks for losing house points, and even more grateful for the peace that the absence of Susan brought. Whilst eating she noticed Susan's girls and Xavian and his friends were also away. They must've all gone to the opening of the new shop, the one that was keeping what it was going to sell a secret which must be not so secret by now.

As she continued to eat she looked towards the Slytherin table and wasn't surprised to find the dark lord missing, she'd long before noticed the pattern of Tom skipping food if he was in a really bad mood and this time quidditch was to blame. After awhile she reached for her goblet, as she drank water from it a chocolate pudding caught her eyes and Hermione suddenly found herself craving chocolate chip cookies. Alas, she couldn't buy any from Shiv Patil as all her money had been spent on buying solanum nicrum and an old book. The Horcrux book, she thought as her eyes widened in remembrance and she put the goblet down with more force than necessary. Annoyed by the thudding sound that it'd made a student close to her gave her a dirty look but Hermione took no notice as she left the great hall in a hurry.

The Ravenclaw head girl entered her room with an excited expression. Being busy all the time and stress must've caused the book to slip from her mind. But no matter, she'd be reading it any minute now and the timing was perfect as she had plenty of free time. With slightly trembling hands she brought the hardback out of her trunk, and then she sat down on the bed cross legged. Hermione ran a finger down the aging cover of the book before opening it with a deep breath, and the first words written in bold met her eyes. It read, 'No one is born evil', and that was all that was written on that page. Instantly disagreeing with the statement she turned to the other side of the yellowing sheet and read on hungrily.

Almost an hour went by before she straightened her back and bookmarked the page she'd reached. After going to the bathroom Hermione walked around her room to get rid of the jellying feeling in her legs, and her eyes kept finding their way towards the closed book on her pillow. Wow, that was definitely an interesting read. Also, addictive since she wanted to get right back to reading it but she couldn't allow herself to. It wasn't that she didn't have time, she just didn't have time for it because she had to prioritise the broom cursing potion. Its state was due to be checked now and she had to go to the room of requirement. After putting the book back in the trunk Hermione left her room with her mind occupied by what she'd read. The chapters she'd finished had been about ideas of what a soul was, the importance of the human soul, and the theory that the soul existed in parts that was held together by an invisible force. So far there'd been no mention of Horcrux but it would obviously be talked about since the title of the book was, the damages and negative effects of making a Horcrux.

As Hermione turned into a corridor her thought drifted to the young dark lord. Since she'd arrived in the 1940s she'd wondered about Tom's Horcrux's but questions had always risen in her mind when she was mentally stressed, or the timing was just bad and so she'd never given it deep thought. This time though she was pretty relaxed and she hoped picking her brain right now would find answers that could be relied upon.

So, when did Tom make his first Horcrux? Harry had told her he'd seen a memory in Dumbledore's pensive where Tom asked Slughorn about Horcurx's in his sixth year. Well, Slughorn had obviously chosen to forget the memory since he didn't treat Tom coldly and always jumped to his defence. Moaning myrtle had died during Tom's fifth year, and Harry had told her that he'd killed his paternal grandparents and father in the summer of his fifth year, so that meant he was already a murderer. But he couldn't have used those killings to create a Horcrux since he'd asked Slughorn in his sixth year on how to make one. That just led to more questions like, did Tom have a Horcrux right now or was he planning to make one soon? If so, according to history, who was he supposed to kill to make it? Or, what if he was still clueless about how to make one?

Hermione wracked her brain until she recalled something important. Merlin, why hadn't it come to her instantly? Especially, when she'd remembered the information on Friday night after the dark lord had severely crucioed her, the cruciatus curse must be to blame. Now, getting back to the point. Harry had said Tom's diary Horcrux had told him it'd preserved the memory of its 16 year old self, so that must mean he'd created one during his sixth year, and obviously not very long after consulting Slughorn. Tom was 17 now so that meant he definitely had a Horcrux right now. Hermione wasn't surprised when she didn't freak out or feel panicked by the logical conclusion, she'd already done that on Friday night.

So, if the deaths of moaning Myrtle, his paternal grandparents and father wasn't used in making his Horcrux or Horcrux's, then who did he kill to make them? She had no clue, then again it didn't matter as it wouldn't make a difference to her mission.

After she murdered him she'd have to find and destroy his diary, and also Marvolo Gaunts ring. Just in case, as it had been one in her time. She wouldn't bother with the others though as he'd definitely made them after leaving Hogwarts, and she wasn't going to let him leave Hogwarts alive. The dark lord's death eaters, if they were actually his death eaters at this time, would be no match for her if they suspected anything and she was sure none of them were hiding Tom's Horcrux's for him. She'd observed Malfoy and co being rebellious and that meant the dark lord didn't have their absolute, blinding loyalty yet. Which meant there was no way Tom would stupidly entrust them with something as precious as his Horcrux. Providing, that they were his death eaters at this moment and not some gang that got a kick out of pissing him off from time to time, even if the consequences were severe.

Fuck, she was getting a headache thinking of the same thing over and over again but in different words. It didn't bloody matter if they were his death eaters or not, because it was in no way going to affect her killing Tom Riddle or hunting down his Horcrux's. Merlin's balls, why couldn't all this have ended with just his death?

Soon Hermione made the door to the room of requirement appear and then she stepped inside feeling incredibly tense. What if she'd made the potion wrong and it didn't turn the right colour? She could see the cauldron, a little closer and she would know. With her heart beating fast she moved forward and a gasp escaped her lips as she looked down. Oh my god, it was lilac. Yes, she'd succeded. Hermione wanted to scream in joy but she settled for a smile instead. Now, all she had to do was wait one more day until it turned silver and then the potion would be complete. With a cheerful expression she stepped out the door and back towards the heads quarters.

It was almost evening, Hermione decided to read more from the Horcrux book until dinner time but her plan was ruined by an owl with a message. Actually, more like an owl with a written order. Tom wanted her to come to the library in 10 minutes to continue work on their project, and even though she didn't want to endure a very unhappy after quidditch dark lord, she knew she really didn't have a choice. With her bubble of joy burst she grabbed her bag before leaving her room with an unhappy expression.

Hermione found the dark lord at the back of the library, he was sat at a table reading and he looked relaxed. She began to cautiously edge closer when he suddenly looked up and she froze. His calm demeanour remained as he stared at her for a few seconds, then he raised his wand and made a chair in front of him pull out. Feeling relieved she took the seat, luck was definitely on her side this time. First, the broom cursing potion had been a success, and now Tom appeared to have been cured from his post quidditch anger syndrome.

The dark lord slightly tilted his head to the left before a pleased expression formed on his face, and she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. It wasn't just general happiness radiating from him, there was something else in his eyes, it was like looking at a child that'd just discovered candy. Why the hell was he so delighted by her presence? What in the name of fucking, Merlin, was going on here?

"I've found something very interesting" Tom suddenly said, sounding excited and she blinked startled. Thank, God. His freaky behaviour was due to something he'd found, not her. Soon the same maddening interest in his eyes reflected from hers. What had he discovered? His excited voice had sounded just like the way it did when he talked about the dark arts, and if he was acting like that over a potions discovery then it must be a very interesting find indeed.

"What have you found?" Hermione said, trying to sound uninterested but she couldn't keep the curiosity out of her voice.

"Look at these" he said, levitating a stack of yellowing parchment towards her and she caught them with an eager expression before skimming through their Latin text. Her excitement vanished as she realised they were research articles from the 1840s about experimentation on cats, she just couldn't see the relevance between the articles and their potions project.

"I don't understand, Riddle" she said looking up with a confused expression. "Our project is on werewolves, not cats"

"I know" he snapped, making her jump. "If you had been reading instead of skimming" he said in an irritated tone as he untitled his head. "You would have found what links it to our project" he finished raising his voice. Oops, she was guilty as charged.

"Sorry" she said in a low voice.

"You mentioned using a combination of liquid silver and Monks-hood" Tom said, ignoring her apology. "Those articles mention using a compound like that on cats" he continued, with the expression of excitement back on his face. "Apparently it affected their minds somehow" he finished in a high pitched tone and Hermione held her breath. Merlin, the dark lord was pretty close to the truth. "Look at article number seven, third paragraph" he added in a commanding tone. She mechanically located the section and ran her eyes over the words without mentally registering them. "After enduring the Cruciatus curse the cats went crazy and tried to bite everything they found." Tom said hurriedly with bored tone. "But if they were given the Silver- monkshood compound with Asphodel before being tortured" he continued sounding fascinated again. "Then, they behaved like normal cats for a day or two until the insanity kicked in" Hermione could see where this was leading to and she couldn't help but feel worried. Silence descended upon them whilst the dark lord stared at her with an impatient expression and that eventually changed to reflect anger. "Don't you get it?" he suddenly hissed, clearly she was not giving him the reaction he'd expected. "Before coming here did half of your brain shrivel up and die" he said raising his voice as he punched the table and she flinched.

"I understand" Hermione said hastily. "What you said, it sort of shocked me and I just froze" she added faking excitement and the dark lord's angry look instantly vanished. "I get it" she continued running a hand through her hair. "The Silver-monkshood compound preserves their mind from the curse temporarily" she finished emphasising the last two words.

"Exactly" Tom said leaning towards her. "But what if it could somehow be used to preserve the human mind when a person transforms into a werewolf" he said sitting back straight again and one side of his lips curled to form half a smile on his face. Holy crap, thanks to her he was well on his way to inventing the wolfsbane potion.

"You mean it could be used to-" she trailed of dramatically and forced herself to look overjoyed by the idea.

"Yes, but since the effects don't appear to be permanent the person would have to continue drinking the potion" That was also true of wolfsbane, Lupin had to drink it everyday until the full moon. "It's the third ingredient that will make the difference" Tom said suddenly looking enlightened. "Asphodel doesn't really interact with the compound, it's just a binding agent of silver and Monkshood" he continued with a dismissive tone. "We just have to find the other ingredient, or ingredients that'll interact with the compound in the right way and make it possible" he finished cheerfully, and even though the library was dimly lit his eyes seemed to gleam from excitement.

Hermione knew what the other ingredients were and how they interacted with Monkshood but she wasn't about to tell him, it would look way too suspicious.

"Okay, let's find it or them" she said in a false determined voice.

"I've already got some likely ones in mind" he said levitating a book towards her with a thoughtful expression. "Read out the properties of the ingredients on page 27" he ordered as he brought out his quill and Hermione immediately obeyed. Almost an hour went by as they went through ingredient after ingredient and soon she found her throat dry from reading out aloud. "That's enough" Tom suddenly said holding up his hand, while he continued to write with his eyes downcast on the parchment.

He must have noticed she wasn't comfortable from her hoarse tone of voice. Nah, unlikely. Voldemort loved crucioing people so why would he give a damn about someone's comfort. Must've told her to stop so he could figure something out from everything he'd inscribed so far, and it looks like she was right. Minutes had gone by but he seemed to have forgotten her existence. All he appeared to be aware of was his writing instrument and parchment.

Hermione stared at him whilst reflecting on the past hour. He was so clever, it was impressive the way he'd easily matched up the reactions that'd occur if the said ingredient were to collide with Monkshood. He'd even picked up on the small details that she'd thought were irrelevant. It was amazing the way his brain worked, it would've taken her a day if she'd done it but it'd only taken him an hour or two. Tom suddenly mumbled to himself, then he jabbed his quill into the table with a frustrated expression and a lock of his hair moved down to slightly cover his right eye. He continued talking to himself in whispers whilst crossing things out and forming fresh words with black ink. With her eyes still on him she slightly leaned forward and placed a hand on the left side of her face before leaning her head on it. Merlin, he was so handsome, and it was so cute the way his hair had fallen over his eye. Not only was he good looking, he also had the perfect brain to match it. In her entire life she had never met a boy so beautiful and intelligent. "Granger" Tom said, snapping her out of her thoughts and Hermione immediately felt disgusted with herself.

"What?" she said dropping her hand from her face while sitting up straight, and she looked at anything but him.

She did not just think those things about Tom Riddle. He wasn't beautiful, he was an ugly monster. He was a murder, a psychopathic dark wizard. He was the dark lord, he was Voldemort. The very same Voldemort that was responsible for the deaths of her parents and friends. Tom had charmed and fooled many people with his good looks and she wasn't going to fall under the same spell. Hermione Granger was in no way attracted to Lord Voldemort, because there was nothing attractive about a heartless beast.

She knew what he really was underneath that perfect face of his and she shouldn't let herself forget it. That's it, that's what must have happened. There was no denying he was a genius, she must've become so impressed with his brilliance that she'd let it slip from her mind she was looking at Voldemort. Yes, that must be it because she couldn't really like Tom Riddle. Hermione took a couple of deep breaths and repeated that thought continuously in her mind.

"I think we should continue another day" the dark lord said as he stood up and a second later she got up feeling relieved. Still not able to meet his eyes she quickly packed her things and left the library before him. But annoyingly he caught up with her and it was like they'd left at the same time. He'd walked beside her before so it shouldn't bother her, except it did this time.

As they turned into a corridor a painting caught her eyes, there was a woman in it with a peacock feathered headpiece and she was watching them with interest. Why was she doing that? Surely, it was nothing but Hermione couldn't help but feel uneasy. Soon she arrived at the great hall for dinner and so did the dark lord. They split up to go to their tables and once she was seated she felt strangely free. Holy mother Mary, the dark lord was mentally messing her up. Well, he is Voldemort and feeling suffocated by his presence shouldn't be anything to be alarmed about, anyone would be if they knew the real him. Right, so that's what all this was. She should give her mind a rest and just eat. Hermione took a deep breath and then she drank some water from her goblet. As her eyes wandered over the table she could tell the Ravenclaws still hated her from their expressions, and also from their not so quiet whispered comments.

"Hey, Maya" Susan's voice suddenly sounded and she momentarily closed her eyes. God, it was that annoying girl. Was it too much to wish for a peaceful dinner when she was killing Voldemort for the world?

"What do you want?" Hermione said gloomily as she picked up a knife and fork.

"Oh, you're still mad at me" she said with a sad expression. "I'm sorry I said that about you and Lestrange. I just-"

"It's okay" the head girl said tiredly. She couldn't be bothered to hear the girl's reasons, they were probably made up anyway.

"So we're good" she said sounding uncertain.

"We're good" Hermione repeated and then she started to cut into a lamb steak. As she ate Susan told her in detail what she'd been up to in Hogsmeade with her friends and Xavian. The head girl listened with mild interest when it came to the mysterious shop of 'what are my secret products' and she was disappointed to learn it was just a new brand of women's magical cosmetics. Susan however seemed over the moon and went on about a number of items she'd brought before becoming strangely silent.

"Since you sat down you haven't looked towards the Slytherin table once" Susan suddenly said with a soft voice and Hermione stopped chewing. Her real question was, since you sat down you haven't looked towards Tom once. The head girl resumed chewing and after she'd swallowed she fixed Susan with a glare.

"So what?" Hermione hissed. "What I look at or don't look at is my problem" she said raising her voice and Susan just gave her a defeated look. For some reason this infuriated her even more, but why? Well, the girl was making wrong assumptions and she wanted to set things straight. She hadn't purposely looked at Tom because she'd wanted a break from the dark lord after having spent hours in his company. Especially, when it was having a strain on her mind. That's all it was and there was nothing else to it, but she couldn't tell Susan that. "Forgive me for not wanting to look at the snakes-" Hermione started bitterly. "- when one of their own lost me a 100 points, which turned me into an outcast in my own house" she finished with a raised voice.

"I'm so sorry" Susan said with a regretful expression.

"You're supposed to be my friend" she said grabbing her bag with much more force than necessary.

"I am, I just thought-"

"You of all people should've understood why" she cut in with an accusing tone as she stood up.

"I do understand, when I asked you the question I wasn't-"

"Instead of being so insensitive" Hermione interrupted with a fake hurt expression and then she speed towards the great hall doors. Susan called out to her but the head girl didn't look back. Once she was out in the corridor she felt glad to have gotten away, but it didn't take very long before she started to feel guilty. That was kind of harsh on Susan, she should've used a gentler approach. Too late now, but she'd make it up to the girl tomorrow by being the first one to break ice and apologise.

As Hermione walked down a set of stairs a faint scent of cloves and sandalwood caught her nostrils, and finding it to her liking she inhaled deeply. It was familiar, where had she-. Merlin, Tom smelt like that, and she-. So what if she liked the smell of the perfume, cologne, shampoo or whatever he used? It just meant they both admired the same things like the way they both loved potions, charms and dark arts, therefore their mutual preference of a fragrance wasn't anything out of the ordinary.

Soon a tall figure with its back to her meet her eyes and she knew without a doubt it was the dark lord. For awhile they walked in the same direction and Hermione couldn't help but feel some sort of tension bubbling up inside her. What was wrong with her? The dark lord was calm and none threatening right now so why was her brain acting all-, oh-, must be because the date to murder him was getting closer and the stress of it all was just getting worse. She took a deep breath and it made her feel loads better.

Tom suddenly changed direction from the usual route to the heads quarters and she wondered where he was going at this time until she remembered it was his turn to patrol Hogwarts. The remainder of her journey alone was a lot more relaxing, and upon arrival at her destination the effect was ruined by the painting guarding the heads quarters entrance. Inside the frame was a crowd whispering and amongst them was a woman with a peacock feathered headpiece. Realising her presence they all stopped talking and Persephone came forward with a smile on her face.

"Password" the goddess asked cheerfully, and ignoring her Hermione stared at all the painted people with a suspicious expression. The peacock woman had been staring at her earlier today and now she was here. Last time another painted woman had done that and then she was also seen in Persephone and Hades painting. Could it be a coincidence or was there some sinister reason? Were they all spying on her?

"Password" Hades said this time and she momentarily closed her eyes. Bloody hell, she was going nuts. She was reading way too much into acts that must be identical due to chance and getting paranoid for no reason. Arrgh, was today the national mind fucking day or something.

"Medusa" She said tiredly.

After the door clicked open she walked inside the heads common room and then progressed into her room. Hermione felt like reading the Horcrux book but the headache pounding away at her skull put her of. After getting changed into her night clothes she crept into her bed and extinguished the candles magically. A dim purple light from the corner of her room caressed her closed eyelids. But her exhausted brain didn't find it alarmingly foreign after repeated exposure to it for many nights, and after a few seconds she fell fast asleep.

Monday at breakfast the Ravenclaws appeared to have forgotten she'd lost them a 100 house points, and after she'd made up with Susan she'd eaten peacefully listening to the girl's chatter about some fashion designer. In potions she found Tom to be in a good mood and was glad of it. Halfway through the class she realised he was telling her a lot more things than he usually did. Was this because he now falsely thought she was super intelligent and therefore with a brain worthy enough to understand it, or was this the result of not making him angry and thinking he was in control for a prolonged period? Whatever the reason, life was so much easier when she pretended to be submissive, and dare she say, even a little enjoyable.

In the afternoon she visited the room of requirements and as expected she found the potion had turned silver. Humming the tune to her favourite song with an expression of happiness she stored the metallic liquid in a glass bottle and then she cleared everything away. After arriving at her room she hid the potion in her trunk, then she took out the object cursing book and read up on the spell again. It was simple, smear the potion on the broomstick and the activation object, and then cast a spell on both of them. The final step was to cast another spell on the activation object and the broomstick would automatically start to throw of the passenger. She needed an activation object, what should it be? It would have to be something discrete and easy to carry. Also, it couldn't be something that would raise suspicions. So it had to be something that could be worn in plain sight, not be heavy and be easy enough to hide if needed. With her brain in search mode she glanced at her wrist to check the time and also found the answer there. The wrist watch, it was perfect to use as the activation object.

Now, for the next step she needed the broomstick. After a second the colour drained from Hermione's face and she ran a hand through her hair with wide eyes. Oh, God. She needed Tom Riddle's broomstick but how was she supposed to get her hands on it? Why hadn't this problem bloody occurred to her till now? Okay, think calmly. She'd seen it on him when he went to practice quidditch and when he'd returned from practicing, therefore it was obvious the broom was being kept in his room.

Merlin, oh, fuck. She'd have to sneak into his room and that was as good as attempting suicide. If the dark lord found her in his room he'd definitely kill her, she was sure of it. With her brows creased she thought and thought of another option and found nothing but dead ends. Crap, there was no other fucking way than breaking into his room. How on earth was she supposed to know when he wouldn't be in his room? Even if the room was empty what were the chances that Tom wouldn't walk in seconds later? Hermione stood up and paced in front of her bed for awhile. Holy mother Mary, all her hard work and planning couldn't have been for nothing. She had to somehow make this work, she had to kill him. But she couldn't risk it by carelessly walking into his room. No, she would have to plan out her next step very carefully. Hermione tried to come up with something but her brain felt fried, plus she didn't have much time as she had to get to her afternoon classes.

At night she sat staring at a candle flame for a while but a solution didn't come to her. She yawned before sitting on her bed and then she rubbed her temples. Maybe she wasn't coming with something concrete because she was too tired. Promising herself she would find the answer tomorrow she crept under the covers and then she put out the candle lights. The purple glow from the chrysanthemums radiated in the darkness like a comforting nightlight, and being used to its presence Hermione drifted into a deep sleep without even registering it.

**Thank you for your reviews everyone. Hope this new chapter is likeable, I haven't proof read it that much so please excuse any errors. Please leave reviews as they let me know what your thoughts are of the chapter and they also make me update faster.**

**If any of you watch supernatural, their latest episode, 8x12, had Albertus Magnus mentioned in it. I was like, 'yes, Tom's further uses of dragon's blood book's author got mentioned' (Chapter 24),**

**By the way, Albertus Magnus was a real alchemist back in old times.**

**If any of you watch vampire diaries look away if you don't want spoilers for their latest episode 4x12.**

**I am supper mad at Julie Plec, how could she have written the episode like that?**

**1st of all they shouldn't have killed Kol, not because he was super hot, but as a character he had a lot of potential and it would have been wonderful to watch his character development on screen.**

**2nd Kol was an original vampire so how could Elana, a newbie vamp and Jeremy, also a newbie hunter easily manage to kill him.**

**I really hate this, when writers spontaneously change the rules that don't make any sense. In past episodes the originals were portrayed as almost unstoppable, Elijah an original used to scare the crap out of Katherine who was turned in the 1800s I think, he was shown easily beating Damon who is a couple of hundred years old. A Vervain grenade did almost nothing to him so why did it hurt Kol so bad? Elijah, Klaus and even Rebecca could swat away vampires like flies, but Elijah was the best one in my opinion when it came to action scenes. He had a cool way of doing it that made it seem effortless on his part, and his high moral approach with lines like 'you have my word' makes you want to just melt.**

**Back to the point, killing Kol in this way did not do justice to his character and makes no sense what so ever since he was an original who got killed by a new vampire and a new hunter. And that should not have been possible if the author was following the rules of the universe she created in the beginning.**

**Another thing, Elana was meant to be good and kind hearted. She couldn't stand to feed off humans or kill them because she had empathy. But in this episode she emotionlessly comes up with a plan to commit vampire genocide, because killing Kol kills all the vamps that were ever sired from his bloodline. She doesn't even show remorse or even think of a second option like daggering him to put him in a coma instead. Stefan and Damon are good vamps in her eyes and she loves them but what about the vampire genocide she carried out, there must have been a lot of good vamps she killed and took away from their loved ones. How could she be so heartless and remorseless? Julie Plec how could you give Elana's character a complete personality change?**

**Julie also needs to put Klaus and Caroline together, clearly there are feelings and attraction there. She said in an interview it wouldn't be good because Klaus is a mass murderer. I know but he isn't a 2D only evil character either, why show us in the previous episodes he is capable of having feelings for her if you're going to stop with, he's a killer, he has no feelings.**

**Klaus takes what he wants, he could have easily compelled her and had his way with her, but no. He waits for her to truly want him, smiles at even the smallest affection he gains from her and, on some level he even takes verbal abuse from her without hurting her back. He gave her his blood when she was dying of a werewolf bite, he drew a picture of a horse for her because she likes them, gave her a bracelet, a dress for the ball, blackmailed her into a date with him and even rescued her when the council kidnapped her.**

**Clearly there are feelings there otherwise Klaus wouldn't have done those things and Caroline wouldn't have gone along with it because she didn't put up that much of a fight and on some level she did act back. So just because he's evil or a mass murderer doesn't mean he can't love. If you watch the TV show Dexter, his character proves that. Hopefully, Julie will come to her senses and put them together.**

**Sorry everyone about the rant, just so angry with the writer of the vampire diaries.**

**Please leave reviews and I'll try an update as fast as I can.**


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